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Austerity measures 7 Customs, ST, Excise collectorates to be wound up soon

MUZAFFAR QURESHI

KARACHI: Seven collectorates of Customs, Sales Tax and Central Excise will be wound up shortly to cut administrative expenditures in line with the present government's policy of austerity. The downsizing will affect Collectorate of Central Excise and a Customs Directorate in Karachi.

The other collectorates to be wound up include Sales Tax collectorates in Hyderabad and Hub, Faisalabad, Lahore and Islamabad. The staff of these collectorates specially those of Central Excise will be merged with he existing Sales Tax collectorates.

According to informed sources it has been decided in principle to wind up Central Excise Collectorates all over the country. It has become possible due to drastic cut in goods falling under excise duty, which has now has confined to only 26 items out of more than hundred items. With the doing away with the excise collectorates goods at present falling under Excise network will be transferred to the Sales Tax.

According to a cautious estimate, national revenue coming from the excise duty from all over the country is Rs. 62 billion per annum which will be recovered through Sales Tax on new items. The major item's at present falling in the Excise duty network are cement, cigarettes, beverages and PoL products.. These will be transferred to the Sales Tax purview following the winding up of the Central Excise Collectorates all over the country.

Informed sources stated that decision to winding up of collectorates will be made shortly while the excise duty on goods would be abolished from the next financial year. There are about 847 officers and staff in the Central Excise Collectorate in Karachi which will be merged in the Sales Tax collectorates in the city.

Sources pointed out that there was no plan to curtail staff in different collectorates and all surplus staff will be merged with the Sales Tax collectorates which will be responsible for collecting revenue through the expanding tax net.