The langar (or community kitchen) at the Golden Temple (Harmandir Sahib) Amritsar serves free meals to a massive number of people – around 50,000 daily and well over 100,000 on weekends and festivals. Until June 30, it was exempt from Value Added Tax (VAT) and other governmental taxes, but now, it is set to bear the heat of the new federal tax reforms.
The apex Sikh body Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhik Committee (SGPC) has made a representation to the Finance Minister of India Arun Jaitley, demanding exemption from the GST for the purchase of langar material and other commodities for Gurdwara Sahibs in Punjab.
Under the new legislation, there is a shift from VAT to GST, which means a tax of 12% will be imposed on desi ghee, 18% on sugar and 5% on pulses, according to the SGPC.
SGPC’s Chief Secretary S. Harcharan Singh told Sikhs24 that with the new norms of GST Act, purchases to be made at the SGPC managed shrines would come under the jurisdiction of GST.
“Items such as desi ghee, sugar and pulses cost Rs 750 million annually. With GST, the burden would rise by more than Rs 100 million per year,” he said.
Harsimrat Kaur Badal, Shiromni Akali Dal MP from Bathinda has also urged the Union finance minister Arun Jaitley to get these purchases exempted under the new GST tax reforms.
Anyone or any organisation, regardless of its religious affiliation, will be subject to the new GST imposition on the purchase of raw materials, goods and services.
Sri Harmandir Sahib Amritsar. Source: Supplied
in a notification issued on Tuesday mentioned that 'prasadam' supplied by religious places will not be subjected to any GST.
However, some the ingredients and other input services used for making the same would attract taxation under the new GST regime.
These ingredients include ghee, butter, sugar, vegetable oils and any services subjected to the transportation of these goods.
SGPC President Kirpal Singh Badungar has questioned government’s intentions of making ‘parsad’ exempt from GST.
“How can Government claim that ‘parsad’ is exempt from GST while they are taxing all the ingredients used to make it?
"A tax of 12% is imposed on desi ghee, 18% on sugar and 5% on pulses,” said Mr Badungar in a statement.
Meals in the langar are vegetarian, and are simple, nourishing and nutritious. They usually consist of rotis (bread), rice, daal (lentils), a vegetable dish, kheer (dessert), tea-biscuits etc.
The langar or community kitchen was designed by Sikh Gurus to uphold the principle of equality between all people regardless of religion, caste, colour, creed, age, gender or social status.
