(BS)
With the government ready to roll out the goods and services tax (GST) regime, the Indian Auto LPG Coalition (IAC) has demanded revisions in duties to bring domestic and commercial liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) under uniform tax rates to encourage usage of environment friendly auto LPG and prevent diversion of domestic fuel for commercial use.
Auto LPG is a clean automotive fuel, which is much cheaper than petrol and diesel and very comparable to compressed natural gas (CNG), IAC said. Currently, the duties levied on commercial LPG are much higher than domestic LPG. In fact, there is zero custom and excise duty on domestic LPG and minimal value added tax (VAT), while the same are cumulatively as high as 12-15 per cent on commercial LPG. At the same time, users also enjoy a subsidy on domestic LPG cylinders. “This presents several problems. Firstly, domestic LPG cylinders are often diverted for commercial use in vehicles, which is highly unsafe and allows a misuse of subsidy. Secondly, higher tax rates make auto LPG a less attractive option, when its use needs to be encouraged by all means,” says Suyash Gupta, director general, IAC.
