New Delhi: Footwear costing between Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 a pair, and soaps will soon cost less. A reduction in excise duty from 12 per cent to 6 per cent on footwear has been proposed by Union finance minister Arun Jaitley. The aim is to give relief to the footwear industry, most of which comes under the small and medium enterprises (SME) sector. Soaps, too will become cheaper as its ingredients will no longer attract the basic customs duty as against 7.5 per cent levied earlier
Smokers, however, will have to shell out more for the puff as Mr Jaitley on Thursday proposed a steep hike in duty on cigarettes, and also made pan masala, gutkha, chewing tobacco and aerated drinks containing sugar costlier. Mr Jaitley proposed to increase the specific excise duty on cigarettes in the range of 11 per cent to 72 per cent. Excise duty on pan masala has been increased to 16 per cent from 12 per cent, unmanufactured tobacco to 55 per cent from 50 per cent; gutkha and chewing tobacco to 70 per cent from 60 per cent. Mr Jaitley also proposed to levy an additional duty of excise at 5 per cent on aerated waters containing added sugar adding that they were healthy measures and would be welcomed from the point of view of human and fiscal health.
