In a relief to airlines, the Maharashtra government has significantly reduced Value Added Tax (VAT) on Aviation Turbine Fuel (ATF). According to an official notification, the state government has slashed VAT from 18 per cent to 7 per cent. The slashed VAT will be applicable for a period of six months. The decision comes on a day when petrol and diesel prices were hiked by Rs 3 per litre each, marking the first increase in more than four years, as state-run fuel retailers passed on part of the hit from surging global crude prices triggered by the Iran war.
โIn the Schedule โBโ appended to the Maharashtra Value Added Tax Act, 2002, in entry 6, in column (3), for the figures and sign โ18%โ, the figures and sign โ7%โ shall be substituted,” the notification said.
Aviation Minister thanks Maharashtra government
Union Civil Aviation Minister Kinjarapu Ram Mohan Naidu has thanked Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis for the “timely intervention,” noting that the decision would help keep airfares in check at a time when global challenges are pushing costs upwards.ย
“Maharashtra State has 16 operational airports and the highest annual air traffic amongst the states, of around 75 million passengers, with daily passengers of around 2 lakhs. This reduction in VAT will help the flight operations in all these airports and benefit the large number of passengers,” he said.
Fuel price hike unavoidable
Union Minister G Kishan Reddy on Friday said the fuel price hike was unavoidable due to the global energy crisis and urged people to understand the circumstances behind the increase. Responding to the fuel price hike by state-owned oil companies, he also alleged that opposition parties were trying to “provoke people.”
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“The government led by PM Narendra Modi ji took this step under unavoidable circumstances. No domestic issue is responsible for this. Countries and people across the world have been affected by the energy crisis,” Union Minister of Coal and Mines told reporters here.