GCCI objects to hike in iron ore export duty
PTI, PANAJI | 04 January 2012 20:09 IST
Goa Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI) today said that hike in the export duty for Iron ore will make low grade ore exports from the coastal state totally unviable.
"The export duty will make export of Goan low grade ore totally unviable which will have a cascading effect on the Goan economy," GCCI Chairman Manguirish Pai Raikar said.
GCCI, in a letter to Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee has demanded that the export duty be hiked only on the high grade ore, sparing the low grade ones.
Union government has hiked the export duty from 20 per cent to 30 per cent through a notification on December 30, 2010, leaving Iron ore mining industry fuming.
"Kindly amend the notification and restrict the export duty only to the high grade ore with Fe content above 58 per cent and withdraw the duty on other lower grade ore," Raikar has urged.
GCCI has said that Iron ore exports account for nearly 85 and 95 per cent of total exports of both the Mormugao Port and Panaji Port respectively and both will lose substantial revenues of about 150 crores per annum, if exports are stopped.
"Most of the recent investment made in infrastructure (both Government and private) to cope with increased export market demand will become unviable and would lead to higher production cost of exportable grades, which could make these increasingly unviable through the cost spiral effect," the GCCI said.
The after effects of mining have to be borne by the State and it's people. The paltry sum of Royalty is totally inadequate and needs to be increased substantially...There is absolutely no justification for keeping the Royalty low and going on increasing the Central taxes on Mining--the revenue from which go to the Centre. Will the Government of Goa make a strong case for increasing the Royalty on Mining and also put the Chief Secretary to make up a strong case for demand higher share from thousands of crores of revenue flowing from Goa to Delhi every year?