The Times of India 18.08.2010
PCMC to send notices to jewellers on octroi evasion
PUNE: The octroi department of the Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) will issue notices in a week’s time to jewellers in the municipal limits to seek information about the amount of octroi paid on purchase of gold by them in 2009-10.
The step has been taken in a bid to find out octroi evasions, if any.
Ashok Munde, assistant commissioner and octroi chief, PCMC, said that this information will enable the civic body to take action against octroi evaders and recover octroi and fine.
Munde said, “The octroi department has received information from the sales tax department that jewellers from PCMC have paid sales tax of Rs 1,218 crore for their gold purchases in 2009-10. The jewellers have to pay Rs 24.37 crore octroi on it, but if they have not paid the amount then they will have to pay the octroi as well as ten times the evaded octroi as fine.
The octroi department collects two percent of the value of gold as octroi from the jewellers who bring gold into the municipal limits.
Munde added that the octroi department will give some time to jewellers to give the information, failing which it will be assumed that they have not paid any octroi. Following which a demand would be put up to clear octroi dues and fine.
He stated that the civic body was aware of the amount of octroi which each jeweller was supposed to pay to the PCMC.
The octroi department had conducted a similar exercise last year. Munde said, “Last year also we had collected information from the sales tax department and it was found that the jewellers had evaded octroi of Rs 16 crore. PCMC sent demand notices to 64 jewellers and asked them to pay the evaded octroi and the fine. The total fine worked out to Rs 186 crore. Thirty-four jewellers approached the court in the matter due to which the fine could not be collected.”
