PESHAWAR: The business community of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Thursday urged the provincial government to take prudent measures for elimination of double taxation, broadening of existing tax base, reduction in property tax ratio and exemption to Hayatabad Industrial Estate from additional taxes.
These demands were made by Sarhad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI) President Sherbaz Bilour while chairing a meeting with Special Assistant to Chief Minister (SACM) on Excise and Taxation Syed Ghazi Ghazan Jamal at the chamber house. The meeting was attended by former and current officials of the SCCI and Industrialist Association Peshawar (IAP).
Participants of the meeting asked the provincial government to provide immediate relief to the Covid-hit businesses, adding that the involvement of business community in policymaking was imperative to avoid a rift between government departments and traders.
Warning that a crackdown on business activities was tantamount to creating a gulf between the business community and government, Bilour said that the abolishment of dual taxation was essential to address the business community’s grievances.
Responding to the business community’s woes, Ghazi Ghazan Jamal informed that the government was formulating a concrete strategy to eliminate double taxation and bring people under the tax net, adding that the provincial excise department has reduced different taxes from 8pc to 4pc.
The SACM said that the department will soon launch an online system to reduce interaction between taxpayers and the relevant department, while a GIS Map survey would be launched in Peshawar by end of December this year.
Furthermore, he informed the meeting that the department was also going to introduce an e-payments system.
Later, he assured the SCCI and business community that the government would take practical steps to address their grievances regarding double taxation and others.
