Himachal Congress Govt Raised Cement Tax While Centre Cut Prices by ₹40: Jai Ram

Leader of the Opposition Jai Ram Thakur on Tuesday accused the Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu–led Congress government of being “anti-people,” alleging that at a time when the Centre has reduced the Goods and Services Tax (GST) to provide relief, the state government has secretly increased the additional excise duty on cement. He was addressing party functionaries at a seminar on “Next Generation GST Reforms.”

Thakur said that while the central government has reduced cement prices by ₹40 per bag, the Congress government has made it costlier by ₹6. “At a time when disaster-affected residents of the state need relief, the government should immediately roll back this tax hike. The Chief Minister must stop running the state on the formula of burdening people with more taxes,” he said.

He claimed that the Modi government is working to ease the tax burden on citizens, but the Sukhu government raised the additional excise duty to ₹16 in the September 15 Cabinet meeting, pushing up cement prices by ₹6 per bag. “This decision was concealed from the media, exposing the government’s anti-people attitude,” he alleged.

Thakur contrasted the Congress-led UPA era with the present, saying that items like paints, detergents, shampoos, coffee, toothpaste, mineral water, and cosmetics once carried a 30% tax, but under the new GST reforms, they are taxed at just 5%. “This has brought immense relief to the people,” he said.

Calling the “next-generation GST” the Centre’s biggest gift to citizens, he claimed it has already translated into savings of at least ₹50,000 on a car purchase and ₹10,000 on motorcycles. Thirty-one life-saving drugs, including those for cancer and thalassemia, have been exempted from GST, he added.

“Most household goods are now taxed at 5% or zero. Ninety percent of items earlier in the 28% GST bracket have been brought down to 18%, while 99% of goods that were taxed at 12% now fall under 5%. This is a huge relief for ordinary people,” Thakur said.

Highlighting other reforms, he said the Modi government has raised the income tax exemption limit to ₹12.75 lakh. “Between these two measures alone, Indians are saving nearly ₹2.5 lakh crore annually, leading to a major improvement in their quality of life,” he asserted.