Hyderabad : Telangana Finance Minister T Harish Rao today urged the Centre to cancel the GST on beedi sector in the state and relieve the women depending on it.
Along with principal secretary Somesh Kumar, Finance secretary Ramkrishna Rao, Harish Rao met with Union Finance Minister Niramala Sitharamana at Goa on the sidelines of a GST Meeting. On the occasion Harish explained to the union minister that about 5 lakhs of beedi workers more than 90 per cent of them women are working in about 1000 beedi manufacturing units. They are working in the beedis industry despite health and financial problems he said.
Lakhs of families are coming under hefty GST on beedies and beedi leaf he said. He asked Nirmala to cancel 25 per cent GST on beedi manufacture and 18 per cent on beedi leaf and relive the poor women workers in the sector. The state government is extending Rs 2016 pension facility to the beedi workers and the centre should repeal the GST to unburden, he said. When Harish sought for special package from the Centre to help beedi workers, Niramala asked him to give better proposals to revive beedi workers economically across the nation. (nss)
