Senior Congress leader, Ampareen Lyngdoh has termed the Rs 31 state tax on fuel, which is roughly one-third of the current cost of petrol in the state, “ridiculous.”
“Before setting a cess policy on fuel, there should have been proper consultation and the reason for the collection should be made public. We should know why there was a requirement for the Rs 31 percent cess levy on fuel,” Lyngdoh said.
Reacting to a statement made by Deputy Chief Minister, Prestone Tynsong that the tax is a cess meant for the education sector, the Congress leader said, “Any cess taken should have come in form of a bill on the floor of the House. We need to know if the Rs 31 percent cess on education will be good in the long run, if you are, anyways taking all the vehicles off the road. I have no idea of how they are doing this calculation and why this cess on fuel for education because I was not privy to such a justification.”
Pointing out that while the central government tax is just Rs 16.50 per litre, which is manageable, Lyngdoh questioned, “Why has the government of Meghalaya wait for the people to protest before it takes action.”
Lyngdoh felt that the “severe” standoff between the commercial drivers and the government needs to be addressed through a consultation with no excuses to end the sufferings of commuters and the public at large.
