With that it's a wrap to the LIVE updates on the Bharat Bandh called by the traders and trasporters in the country. For more news, views and other updates stay logged on to CNBCTV18.com.
'Bharat Vyapar Bandh' evokes lukewarm response
The day-long 'Bharat Vyapar Bandh' called by the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) evoked a lukewarm response with most shops and commercial establishments open through the day. The traders' body, however, claimed that shopkeepers supported its nationwide business shutdown call to protest against issues related to the Goods and Services Tax (GST) and "unethical business practices of foreign e-commerce companies". Various markets in the national capital were open on Friday during the Bandh with many saying that despite supporting the cause, they did not want to suffer another day of losses. However, CAIT in a statement said the shutdown was a "grand success" as more than 8 crore small businesses belonging to about 40,000 trade associations across the country kept their shutters down and no trading activity took place in any commercial market.
Businesses unaffected in Punjab, Haryana in 'Bharat Vyapar Bandh'
Businesses remained unaffected in Punjab and Haryana on Friday during the "Bharat Vyapar Bandh" called by trader unions, with many saying though they supported the cause, they could not afford to down shutters, PTI reported. The Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) on Thursday had said all commercial markets across the country will remain closed on February 26 in view of its 'Bharat Bandh' call demanding a review of the provisions of the goods and services tax (GST) regime. The CAIT had said dharnas (protests) would be held nationwide at 1,500 places to urge the Centre, state governments and the GST Council to keep in abeyance the "draconian" provisions of GST. In Punjab's Hoshiarpur, Amritsar and Tarn Taran, shops and commercial establishments remained functional as usual and the impact of the bandh was not seen.
Many market associations support 'Bharat Vyapar bandh' but keep shops open
Various markets in the national capital remained open on Friday during the 'Bharat Vyapar Bandh' called by traders' union with many saying that despite supporting the cause, they did not want to suffer another day of losses. The Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) on Thursday had said all commercial markets across the country will remain closed on February 26 in view of its 'Bharat Bandh' call demanding a review of the provisions of the goods and services tax (GST) regime. The CAIT said dharnas (protests) will be held nationwide at 1,500 places to urge the Centre, state governments and the GST Council to keep in abeyance the "draconian" provisions of GST. Brijesh Goyal, president of Chamber of Trade and Industry (CTI), said most of the markets in Delhi have opened but the associations have extended their support to the 'bandh'. "Around 98 per cent markets, hotels, restaurants and industrial areas were open except in some parts of Chawri Bazaar and Karol Bagh. However, they have extended their support. We also held a protest at Kashmiri Gate around 12.30 pm," Goyal said.
Business unaffected in Indore during 'Bharat Vyapar Bandh'
Business remained unaffected in Madhya Pradesh's business capital Indore on Friday during the 'Bharat Vyapar Bandh' called by the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) to protest issues related to the Goods and Services Tax (GST) and e-commerce. According to local traders, businesses had already incurred losses due to the COVID-19-induced lockdown and they didn't want to down their shutters. The nationwide bandh had impacted other parts of Madhya Pradesh baring Indore, where political reasons and pressure made the difference, CAIT district president Mohammed Peethawala said. "We have been registering our opposition over the GST's anomalies since long. But we are not in support of a bandh on this issue right now," said Ramesh Khandelwal, the president of Ahilya Chambers of Commerce and Industries, a federation of traders' bodies.
Good response to Bharat Bandh in Delhi, WB, Assam
The Bharat Bandh called by traders and transporters on February 26 has received a good reponse in Delhi, WB and Assam, while states like Karnataka and Telangana witnessed a mixed response. The Confederation of All India Traders is protesting against rising fuel prices, which are hitting record highs almost every day. Meanwhile in Telangana, protests were seen at some places, while few shops and businesses downed shutters in parts of Hyderabad.
Why are traders and transporters protesting against GST and E-Way Bill?
The Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) called for a Bharat Bandh on February 26 to protest against the rise in fuel prices, the E-Way Bill and the Goods and Services Tax (GST). Close to 40,000 trade associations have joined in for the protest on Friday. The All India Transporters Welfare Association (AITWA) has extended their support to the Bharat Bandh.
Read the complete story below.
Bharat Bandh: Shops closed, commercial vehicles off roads in Odisha
Traders across Odisha downed shutters and commercial vehicles remained off the roads in the state in solidarity with the nationwide 12-hour bandh called by the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) on Friday. The 6 am-6 pm strike is being observed for demanding simplification of the Goods and Services Tax procedure and the e-way bill mechanism, among other issues. Essential services like medicine and milk, however, were kept out of the purview of the bandh, Odisha Byabasayi Mahasangha leader Sudhakar panda said. Special Secretary of Home Department Santosh Bala, in a letter to district collectors and magistrates, also asked officials to ensure that essential services are not affected due to the strike. "It is apprehended that activists may stop vehicular traffic, rail traffic and close down business establishments and picket before government offices, banks and educational institutions," it said. Around 20 lakh shops and business establishments remained closed throughout the state, and there was no report of any untoward incident till afternoon.
Major problems with e-way bills need to be addressed, says AITWA's Pradeep Singhal
Pradeep Singhal, president of All India Transporters Welfare Association (AITWA) while explaining the shortcomings of the e-way bill said, there are many problems regarding the e-way bill, there is a rule of heavy penalty on the e-way bill expiry, which is the amount equal to double the tax amount being collected as penalty. Officers are also charging fines for minor mistakes.
Traders' bodies are split over joining Friday's nationwide shutdown call
While CAIT claimed that the Bandh would be a "grand success" with more than 8 crore traders belonging to over 40,000 business organisations across the country joining it, other trader bodies which PTI spoke to said it was unlikely to have a significant impact as they have not extended support to it. Federation of All India Vyapar Mandal (FAIVM) National General Secretary V K Bansal said while markets in Surat will be closed, Bandh is expected have 10 per cent impact in markets across the country. Delhi General Secretary of Bharatiya Udyog Vyapar Mandal Rakesh Yadav said it has not extended support to the Bandh and markets in Delhi are expected to be open. Jammu Traders Association President Neeraj Anand said local markets will be open but traders will hold protests. Uttar Pradesh Traders Association President Sanjay Patwari said there would be 50-60 per cent impact of the Bandh in the state.
'Bharat Vyapar Bandh' expected to elicit a mixed response
General Secretary of CAIT, Praveen Khandelwal told PTI that they expect a mixed response on the nationwide strikes with differential impact across various states and traders. He said, the markets in Delhi will close after 2 pm, while all major markets in states like Maharashtra, MP, and Gujarat will be shut. Markets in South India are expected to have some 70-80 percent impact while North-Eastern states might have over 80 percent impact, he said. Khandelwal said going forward, CAIT would launch an aggressive agitation from March 1 in various states targeting chief ministers across political parties on GST related issues.
Bharat Bandh: Here's what remains closed today
In a statement, the CAIT said that almost all the commercial markets across India will remain shut on Friday. The call for the bandh has received support from nearly 40,000 trade associations from across the country, it said. The All India Transporters Welfare Association (AITWA) is also supporting the bandh and has vowed to hold a 'chakka jam'. Consequently, besides commercial markets, all transportation is expected to remain shut today. Movement and bookings of bill-oriented goods likely to be hit. Associations of Chartered Accountants and tax advocates have also lent support to the call for Bharat Bandh and they, too, are expected to remain unavailable for the day. Traders have decided not to log into the GST portal on Friday to mark their protest against the law. Despite a bandh on such a large scale, essential services, medical shops, milk, vegetable shops, etc won't get affected. Banks are also expected to function normally. More on what remains closed and open today.
What is an E-Way bill? Why AITWA wants it abolished?
It is an electronic way bill introduced to track the movement of the goods generated on the E-Way Bill portal. Under GST, transporters must carry the bill while moving goods from one place to another when certain conditions are satisfied. A GST registered person cannot transfer goods in a vehicle worth more than Rs 50,000 without an E-Way bill. The bill can be generated or cancelled through SMS, Android App or on the website (ewaybillgst.gov.in). A poll conducted by AITWA showed more than 80 percent of transporters from different parts of the country want the bill to be abolished for the following reasons:
-It mandates impractical compliance from transporters. The rule requires transporters to cover a journey of 200 km/day, which is not practical because of factors such as holiday, accident, part load consolidation, congestion en-route, hub & spoke, drivers’ personal issues, and others.
-Any expiry of the E-Way bill due to mistake is heavily penalised to 200 percent of the tax value or 100 percent of invoice value under CGST Act – even though there is no loss to the government. Moreover, this tax is paid by seller/buyer and has nothing to do with transporters, yet they are suffering.
-AITWA feels complying the new rules translates into higher and costly compliance burden. It says, with penalties running into lakhs of rupees, there will be no business left to do.
-The new rules can also lead to fatal road accidents, since the drivers would need to drive faster to prevent penalties.
Diesel, petrol prices today
Fuel prices in the country remained unchanged for the third day in a row as oil marketing companies paused the hike. The rates have been hiking for 12 consecutive days since Feb 9. The petrol and diesel prices in major cities as of Feb 26:
K'taka lorry owners call for daylong strike on Friday
The Karnataka State Lorry Owners and Agents Association (KSLO&A) on Thursday called for a day-long strike on Friday in protest against the hike in fuel prices and toll rates, and also warned the Union government of bringing transportation to a grinding halt from March 15 if the issues raised by it are not addressed. Addressing a press conference, KSLO&A president G.R. Shanmugappa said that exorbitant tax on oil is causing huge financial distress to the lorry owners. "The Union government should take immediate steps to reduce the cess while the state government should reduce the value added tax (VAT) by Rs 4, otherwise it will be extremely difficult to run the business," he said.
Other organisations joining the strike
The All India Transport Welfare Association (AITWA) an apex body of 1 crore transporters have already supported the strike and has also announced 'Chakka Jam' of transport sector on Friday all over India. CAIT Secretary General Praveen Khandelwal said that not only traders but even small industries, hawkers, and women entrepreneurs among others will also join the bandh. Further, associations of chartered accountants and tax advocates have supported the strike and have informed their clients not to visit their offices on Friday.
Mixed response expected from Bandh as traders' bodies split over joining shutdown
A mixed response is expected to the 'Bharat Vyapar Bandh' on Friday with traders' bodies split over joining the nationwide shutdown call to protest against the issues related to GST and e-commerce. While the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT), which gave the Bandh call, claimed that more than 8 crore traders belonging to over 40,000 business organisations across the country, including Delhi, will join it by shutting their commercial establishments, other traders' bodies that.
No vehicle movement for E-Way Bill-oriented goods between 6 am and 8 pm, says AITWA President
Mahendra Arya, AITWA national president, has said that all state-level transport associations have pledged their support to the one-day protest against the fuel price hike and demand for scrapping of the new E-Way Bill. "They will reject booking and movement of all E-Way Bill-oriented goods for a day. All transport companies have been asked to park their vehicles between 6 am and 8 pm as a symbolic protest. All transport godowns will display protest banners,” said Arya, adding, that the transport companies will request customers not to book or load goods on bandh day.
Samyukta Kisan Morcha appeals farmers to peacefully participate in the strike
The Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM) who are leading anti-farm laws protests along the Delhi borders appealed to the farmers to peacefully participate in a 'Bharat Bandh' called by transport and trade unions on February 26.
AITWA joining the strike
Nearly 40,000 trade associations have responded to CAIT’s call of strike. All India Transport Welfare Association of India (AITWA) has also responded to its call and asked its transporters to park their vehicles today. About All India Transporters Welfare Association (AITWA) All India Transporters Welfare Association (AITWA) is an apex body of Goods Transport Companies, covering 65% of the organized road transportation of the country. It is a non-profit organization dedicated to the cause of transport fraternity in India and plays a key role in representing India's Transport Industry before the Government of India and State Governments.
Traders and transporters are demanding simplification of GST structure, uniformity in fuel prices across the country, and the implementation of E-Way bill.
