West Bengal govt lifts tax on Nepali vehicles

Devendra Bhattarai, ekantipur, NEW DELHI, JUN 09 - The West Bengal state government has decided not to impose tolltax on Nepali goods carriers plying the Phoolbari-Banglabandha route from Nepal’s eastern border point of Kakkarbhitta.

The toll charges amounting to IRs 80 for a large vehicle and IRs 50 for a small vehicle have been scrapped following an agreement between the West Bengal government and the Siliguri-Jalpaiguri Development Authority after several rounds of talks.

Kolkata-based Nepali Consul General Chandra Kumar Ghimire said that tax collection on the highway was stopped from May 21 following the accord. Nepali trucks do not have to pay toll charges anymore for transporting cargo between Nepal and India, Bangladesh and other third countries.

There are altogether 16 points along the Nepal-India border used for transporting cargo. The West Bengal border is the only place where toll tax is imposed on Nepali vehicles. The border points link different parts of Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal and Jharkhand states of India. A number of agricultural and other products are transported to India, Bangladesh and other countries via these routes.

West Bengal had been collecting the toll for the last two years. Ghimire said that it was scrapped after Nepal stated that it was inconsistent with the provisions of the Nepal-India Trade Treaty. As per the pact, no customs, tax or service fee can be charged at transit points.

After the talks, the West Bengal government has agreed to resolve other issues including soon making available banking facility at Panitanki. The state government has also agreed to stop illegal taxcollection by trade unions on the Phulbari-Banglabandha route. Different trade unions affiliated to Indian political parties used to collect money which was against the law.