Now, GST burden takes a toll on Durga Puja organisers in Kolkata

The ripple effect from the implementation of GST is being felt the various samitis that organise Durga Puja in Kolkata. Several committees across the city spend crores in organising grand pujas during the four-day celebrations.

Organisers of Deshapriya Park Durgotsav said that the collection from sponsors have gone down by about 50 per cent this year.

“We are usually done budgeting and planning by December or January. We generally get the largest donation from a single sponsor, which gets the maximum mileage out of the theme. This year, however, we have set a fixed budget of about Rs 42 lakh, but have only been able to collect a part of the amount. I am not sure if we will be able to collect even half of the amount required. I think we will have to change our strategy of a one-window sponsorship and reach out to more corporate houses,” said Sudipta Kumar, secretary of the committee.

He said that while GST has lowered collections, it has also raised expenses. “We use a lot of plywood to construct the pandal. The previous tax charged on plywood was 12 per cent, it now has a GST of 28 per cent. We also have to pay a service tax on pandals,” Kumar said. He expressed his concern for puja committees with smaller budgets.

“There are pujas which organised within a budget of Rs 2.5 lakh. Who would like to pay for advertisements there? Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee provides a few concessions from the CESC and the Kolkata Municipal Corporation, but they will not suffice,” Kumar said.