The Punjab Cabinet comprising of Chief Minister of Punjab captain Amarinder Singh on Wednesday approved the levy of entertainment tax on local cable TV connection and slashed the tax rate on direct-to-home (DTH) connections to ensure level-playing field.
The approved tax rate will be Rs.5 for DTH Connection which was earlier levied as Rs.60 and Rs. 2 per local cable connection in urban and rural areas of Punjab. This decision of cabinet brings about Rs.45-47 Crores revenue to the state.
This move sometimes would attract to the other state also. However, no additional entertainment tax has been proposed for cinemas, multiplexes and amusement parks. The decision was developed by the introduction of GST by the Government of India with effect from July 1, 2017, as a result of which entertainment tax being levied and collected by the state government.
According to the today’s release, Finance Minister Manpreet Badal reportedly said that “As per the legal advice, the previous amendments in the draft legislation were in contravention to the Central laws. So, the amendments have been done to enable approval at state level.”
Currently the state has got fixed with a GST of 18% on DTH and cable services by the finance ministry. The new additional tax rate would be levied from the date of notification.
This would draw an attention that this additional local tax defies the purpose of GST and will lead to an increase, though nominal, in the prices of DTH and cable services.
The government is also planning to set up private operators to provide WiFi internet connections at cheaper rates.
