GST jitters: Cloth traders to open shop for only half a day

The imposition of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) has not gone down well with a section of traders in the city. In fact, cloth traders in major wholesale and retail markets, including Chandni Chowk, Sadar Bazaar, Kamla Nagar, Lajpat Nagar, Sarojini Nagar, Nehru Place, and Kirti Nagar, have decided to open their shops only for half a day for a week, starting Tuesday. The shops will be opened only after 1 pm.

"What is the point of levying 5 per cent tax on cloth trade? There should not be any tax on items of basic necessity, such as food and clothing. Besides, the government has introduced so many formalities in the system that it will finish the small-time dealers," said Roshan Lal, a trader in Chandni Chowk's cloth market.

The traders' body also maintained that there should not be more than 15 per cent tax on any item. Under the newly implemented policy, however, the tax sometimes goes up to 28 per cent.