Business expansion and lower taxes could mean more employment. Especially in labour intensive businesses.
The Goods and Services Tax or GST bill is likely to be introduced in the Rajya Sabha by the government tomorrow, and most of the political parties have given their consent to it but with certain conditions. The big question now is, will GST help tackle the problem of unemployment?
In Madhya Pradesh's Dhar district, National Award winner Mohammad Yusuf Khatri - an eighth generation craftsman of Bagh block print - has been running the Bagh printing business from his native village of Bagh for decades. Bagh print is an Indian handicraft in which clothes are printed using block and all natural dyes. This handicraft has huge demand not only in India but abroad as well. Despite the huge demand, Mohammad Yusuf Khatri has not been able to expand his business. One of the major hurdles is the complex and steep taxes like entry tax, octroi, VAT. With the centre now pushing for a unified tax, he is hopeful that businessmen like him will benefit.
"If GST is passed we will have to pay only one tax and hopefully will have to pay less tax. Our businesses will also expand if taxation is simplified and we are charged less," Mr Yusuf said.
Business expansion and lower taxes could mean more employment. Especially in labour intensive businesses like Bagh block printing. In Dhar, there are seven-eight Bagh printers which employ on an average 10 people. Business expansion would require more man power which would mean more employment opportunities in tribal dominant areas like Dhar where people migrate to other places in search of work.
Daily wager Praveen Lohar, who works at a Bagh printing facility, says, "Unemployment is a problem here. We get Rs 300 as daily wage, the day we get work. We need more small factories here. Because of unemployment people from here migrate to Pithampur and Gujarat."
While the GST still has many hurdles to cross, businessmen in the organised sector are quite optimistic about it as it will simplify the taxation process in the country and in the long term help their business grow which can mean more employment opportunities.