Plaques marking Independence Day silver jubilee left amid squalor in Tiruchy village
The names of more than 15 individuals from Andhanallur union who were part of the freedom struggle are inscribed on the other side. While the Tricolour flag was once hoisted by the side of the stones and the spot commanded a gathering during events, the commemorative stuctures now lie amid garbage owing to a lack of maintenance, complain the public.
The situation only worsened during the Tiruchy-Karur national highway expansion, they say. "Every year, on August 15, the nation organises special events to commemorate the sacrifices made for independence," said Ayilai Siva Suriyan, district secretary of the Tamil Nadu Vivasayigal Sangam. "However, by neglecting the memorials and the honours given in the past, we are unknowingly disrespecting both our independence and the freedom fighters who sacrificed their lives for it, bringing deep sorrow," he said.
K Thangaraj, a retired Air Force officer from Thirupparaithurai, who has been attempting to reinstate the memorial structures to their past glory, said, "I request the district administration for immediate steps to renovate the memorials and place them in a manner that allows the public to view and pay respects to our nation's independence and the sacrifices of our freedom fighters. This gesture will help the younger generation understand the value of freedom." TNIE's attempts to contact the Andhanallur block development officer (BDO) for comment went in vain.
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New Indian Express
an hour ago
- New Indian Express
Want 'Good and Simple Tax'? Treat GST as consumption tax
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A vast majority of the formal workforce is stuck in contractual employment. In such a situation, it is regressive to see gross GST collections increasing from 6.23% of GDP in FY 2018-19 to 6.83% in FY 2023-24. It is, therefore, important that rate rationalisation should lower the aggregate level of GST cost that households bear. However, it is not a sin to have multiple levels of GST rates at our stage of development, as richer households have far more ability to bear the cost of development when compared to the lower income households. We don't have a publicly available estimate of Input Tax Credit (ITC) availed by businesses and that of unutilised credit. We also don't know if all the ITC claims are indeed passed on to consumers. Consequently, we don't know the impact of GST on cost of living. It, therefore, is important that the new reforms not only deliver lower published rates but also inform us transparently about the impact of GST on our cost of living. Input Tax Credit: Cost of complexity to cost of corruption During his speech, at the launch of GST, the Prime Minister had called it a "Good and Simple Tax". He had referred to Albert Einstein's statement on complexity associated with income tax and had promised us that we will get one nation, one tax. We did get one nation one tax, but it is so complex that we need specialists to ensure compliance. A recent article referred to GST as Good, not Simple Tax. Another article listed 13 hidden costs of GST regime. For instance, GST on popcorn left a bitter aftertaste, as a TNIE editorial pointed out. A look at input tax credit (ITC) problems make us realise that ITC has not only added compliance costs for honest businesses, but it has also provided unlimited opportunities for corruption, as has been seen in multiple fake ITC claims reports. In its pure form, ITC is expected to help reduce the cascading effect of taxation. 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We can lower the GST rate to the level of net collection and make it a simple consumption tax, in its truest sense, not just a slogan for an election rally. Honest businesses will collect and pay the tax and not waste their energy in making input tax claims. The enforcement machinery will be able to focus its energy on identifying dishonest businesses and leaving the rest of the country to focus on productive work. Positive economic impact from elimination of Input Tax Credit Eliminating ITC can have additional positive economic impact. For example, the vast majority of workforce in India is employed through contractors, and the elimination of ITC on labour contracts will encourage firms to start taking them on their rolls. Businesses will also learn to deal with truly organised labour—an essential characteristic of a progressive society where labour is seen as a valued partner and not an economic slave. 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That will constitute true cooperative federalism. In an ideal world, the union government must just collect one cess on higher GST slabs and raise the required resources without any disputes with the states, which will be the most appropriate step towards bringing transparency in government. If the union government is truly committed to bringing transparency and lowering the cost of living and improving the ease of living and doing business, it must first treat GST as consumption tax and get businesses to simply collect and pay. ITC creates the need for building a complex compliance system and a complex compliance system not only increases the cost of compliance, but also breeds corruption. Once we treat GST as a consumption tax, the consuming states deserve to retain their share of collection. The Centre can and must collect a separate consumption tax or a cess on top of higher-tax category goods and services.
Indian Express
2 hours ago
- Indian Express
States raise revenue loss concerns: GoM backs Centre's plan for GST rate rationalisation
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She also said that ministers from BJP-ruled states have concurred with the suggestions. 'But we have said we are there, if it benefits people, we are okay. On the one hand it reaches people and on the other hand see what is the loss we (states) are facing. Ultimately if a state suffers any loss, that ultimately boils down to the suffering of the common man,' she said. Uttar Pradesh's Finance Minister Suresh Kumar Khanna said the Centre's proposal was welcomed by all member states saying it is in the interest of the common man. 'States were asking that they should be compensated for revenue loss. The revenue loss will be calculated. Ultra luxury goods and sin goods will attract 40 per cent,' he said. Revenue loss concerns of states stem from the plan to prune the list of items in the 12 per cent slab and shift them to 5 per cent. There is also a concern that most items the existing 28 per cent slab. The Centre plans to introduce a special rate of 40 per cent, which will apply only to 5-7 sin, demerit and luxury items. States revenue loss concerns stem from the plan to prune the list of items in the 12 per cent slab and shift them to 5 per cent. There is also a concern that most items in the existing 28 per cent slab will shift to 18 per cent slab except sin and demerit goods. The Centre plans to introduce a special rate of 40 per cent, which will apply only to 5-7 sin, demerit and luxury items. Some states have suggested amending the GST laws to allow for an additional levy going beyond the current cap of 40 per cent (20 per cent Central GST plus 20 per cent State GST). Some of the items right now attract GST of 60-70 per cent, Bhattacharya said, adding that the law should be amended to ensure that the current tax incidence, especially on sin goods, remains at the current level.
Hindustan Times
2 hours ago
- Hindustan Times
MP man dials CM helpline for ‘getting just one laddoo' at I-Day event. Then this happened
In a country where grievances often range from potholes to power cuts, a villager in Madhya Pradesh has raised the bar by lodging a complaint for getting just one laddoo instead of the customary two on the occasion of Independence Day. MP man lodges complaint over missing laddoo at Independence Day event(AI-generated) The quirky complaint was registered by Madhya Pradesh's Kamlesh Kushwaha on chief minister's helpline number, reported news agency PTI. The report citing officials stated that Kamlesh Kushwaha, a resident of Naudha village in Bhind district, dialed the Chief Minister's Helpline after receiving what he considered an incomplete sweet deal during the nationwide Independence Day celebrations on 15th August. The complaint was filed against the village sarpanch and secretary, officials said on Thursday. Man has filed over 100 complaints, says official From roads and drains to laddoos, Kushwaha's complaint record suggests no issue is too small to be escalated. Panchayat secretary Ravindra Shrivastava said, 'Kushwaha is the in habit of doing such things. He has so far filed 107 complaints with the CM Helpline on various issues.' However, Kushwaha's grievance did not fall on deaf ears. Small as the matter was, authorities swung into immediate action. Taking the matter seriously enough, the panchayat rushed to rectify the 'shortfall' by purchasing one kilogram of laddoos for distribution. But in an unexpected twist, the complainant declined the offer.
