Aiming to voice the concerns of the hosiery sector regarding levy of excise duty on branded garments, Information and Broadcasting Minister Manish Tewari headed a delegation of knitwear producers and met Finance Minister P Chidambaram.
Briefing media after the meeting, Mr. Tewari said they approached the Finance Minister to voice their concerns as the hosiery sector, which enjoyed exemption from central excise from 2004 to 2011, has now been subjected to the levy since 2012.
This has increased the liability of the sector, and as Budget is nearing, they felt it necessary to raise the issue before the Finance Minister, expecting that the latter would lend a considerate ear to their issues, he added.
Narinder Miglani, who also met Mr. Chidambaram along with Mr. Tewari, said given the low-cost imports from China and Bangladesh, the levy of excise duty as per prevailing rules is proving detrimental for the sector.
He said as per the policy all clothes bearing labels are considered to be branded clothes and hence eligible for levy of the duty. But this then even includes those items produced to cater to poorer sections of the society.
Mr. Tewari, who also represents Ludhiana in Lok Sabha said the issue is more crucial especially for hosiery manufacturing hub of Ludhiana.