Srinagar, July 26: In view of the prevailing situations in the Valley, the traders here have urged the government to extend the deadline for filing tax returns.
 Traders from various parts of the Valley told Greater Kashmir that they were facing severe hardships in filing income- and sales-tax returns in the wake of back-to-back shutdowns and stringent restrictions, “therefore the government should extend the deadline for filing these returns.”
 “Usually traders file the returns after they receive the bill vouchers along with the goods through Lakhanpur. But for past one and a half month, there is a complete shutdown in the Valley, so how can they file returns of income or sales tax under such circumstances?” asked Rouf A Punjabi, proprietor Handicraft Exports Corporation.
 “The government should immediately extend the deadline of filing the returns by at least three or four months,” he said.
 President Kashmir Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI), Nazir A Dar, said the immediate deadline for filing income tax returns was July 31 for those having an annual turnover of up to Rs 40 lakh, whereas the enterprises having over Rs 40 lakh annual turnover had to file the returns by end of September. The sales tax has to be deposited quarterly, whereas the consolidated returns have to be filed at the end of the year, he added.
 “At a time when everything is shut in the Valley, traders cannot be forced to meet the deadline. The government and authorities concerned should take their pleas into consideration and extend the filing time,” Dar said.
 Punjabi, who is also former president KCCI, said the chamber was receiving phone calls from a number of traders urging the chamber to take up this issue with the concerned. “So the government should think very seriously about it and extend the time,” he said.

Lastupdate on : Mon, 26 Jul 2010 21:30:00 Makkah time
Lastupdate on : Mon, 26 Jul 2010 18:30:00 GMT
Lastupdate on : Tue, 27 Jul 2010 00:00:00 IST