After registering a rise in tax collections after enacting the Himachal Pradesh Tax on Entry of Goods into Local Area Act 2010, the state government has now amended the Act to include six more categories. The state proposes to charge a five per cent entry tax on vehicles purchased from outside the state.

The move is motivated by the virtual loss of tax to the state exchequer due to purchase of a large number of goods vehicles trucks, pick-up and utility vehicles and buses from other states for use in Himachal.

The governor has promulgated an ordinance to amend the Act to include the new categories in which the entry tax ranges from three per cent to five per cent. The amendments are expected to be made part of the Act during the Winter Session of the Assembly.

According to our survey, against an average demand of 450 goods vehicles in the state, only 200 are in supply at a time, as the dealers of the vehicles in the state have purposely kept their quotas very low. The buyers also had to wait for months to get supply.

The impact of entry tax, which will be charged besides the registration fee, will not be much on vehicles purchased for personal use as nearly 96 to 98 per cent of the vehicles registered in Himachal in this category are being purchased locally, says Deputy Excise and Taxation Commissioner N C Beakta.

The governments intention to tax this category is to increase the availability and transaction of goods vehicles within the state, he adds.

The other categories that would attract entry tax on transit of commodity from outside the state include all type of advertisements and publicity material like hoardings (five per cent); waste material and scraps of all types (four per cent); corrugated boxes and mono cartons (five per cent) and LPG cylinders imported from outside the state for commercial use (five per cent).

Three percent entry tax has also been proposed on all items purchased by government departments, boards and corporations for consumption, while there is already a five per cent tax on items purchased by them for execution of work contracts, including hydro power, telecommunication and thermal power.

After Himachal increased VAT from four to five per cent on nearly 116 goods, excluding agriculture and consumer items, earlier this year, tax revenue receipts till September have gone up by about Rs 90 crore.

The entry tax revenue receipts are also expected to be a major contributor in the tax collection target of nearly Rs 2,800 crore for financial year 2010-11.