Mamata urges PM to waive taxes, duties on medical equipment, drugs

KOLKATA: Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Sunday wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi demanding tax waivers on import of medicines and equipment needed to fight Covid.

Banerjee also requested the Prime Minister to facilitate augmentation of health infrastructure "necessitated due to the sudden spike in the number of Covid cases in the country and also in Bengal".

In her letter, Banerjee highlighted how exempting GST and customs duty on health equipment like oxygen concentrators, cylinders, etc would help to encourage the private organisations in extending support to the state governments in meeting "the huge gap in demand and supply" of the same.

"A large number of organisations, individuals and benevolent agencies have come forward to donate oxygen concentrators, cylinders, cryogenic storage tanks, tankers and tank containers and Covid-related drugs. Donations from these organisations will greatly supplement the efforts of the state government in meeting the huge gap in demand and supply. However, many of the donors and agencies have approached the state government to consider exemption of these items from customs duty/SGST/CGST/IGST," the letter reads.

Stating that the issue related to exemption of these tax and duties "falls under the purview of the Central government", she urged the Prime Minister to address the same at the earliest.

This is the fourth letter of Mamata Banerjee to the Prime Minister after being sworn in as the Chief Minister for the third consecutive term.

Meanwhile, Union Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday in a series of tweets responded to Banerjee.

"A list of items for COVID relief granted exemption from IGST for imports was issued on May 3, 2021. These were given exemption from Customs Duty/health cess even earlier. Mamata Banerjee may notice that items in your list are covered," Nirmala Sitharaman tweeted.

"Full exemption from customs duties, including IGST, is already available to ALL COVID relief material (not confined to a list) imported by @IndianRedCross for free distribution in the country. With effect from 3 May, 2021, full exemption from all duties has been provided to Remdesivir injections, Remdesivir API, and for a chemical for the manufacture of this drug," Sitharaman said.

"Also to medical oxygen, equipment used for the manufacture, storage and transportation of oxygen, equipment used for providing oxygen therapy to COVID patients such as Oxygen Concentrators, Ventilators, Non-invasive oxygen masks etc. Also to inflammatory diagnostic kits and reagents for COVID testing and COVID vaccines," she added.

"This exemption applies to all above-mentioned goods when imported free of cost for free distribution in the country by any entity, State government, relief agency or autonomous body on the basis of a certificate issued by a state government," the Union Finance minister said.

The Centre has also announced waiving of IGST (Integrated Goods and Services Tax, levied on inter-state movement of goods and imports) on Covid-related relief material from abroad till June 30.

Bengal on Sunday registered 19,441 fresh Covid cases and the total number of infected patients so far reached 9,93,159. As many as 124 fatalities were reported across the state in the past 24 hours. Around 12,327 people have so far died of Covid in the state.

The Chief Minister had repeatedly claimed that the entry of around three lakh outsiders to the state with the Election Commission holding a staggering eight-phase elections led to the spike in the number of Covid cases in the state.