Licenses of 9 bonded warehouses cancelled

BY OUR STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI, Dec 14: The State Excise department has temporarily cancelled the licenses of 9 bonded warehouses in Assam due to non-payment of arrear levy. This was informed by Excise department minister Parimal Suklabaidya on Wednesday.  

Though the Excise department recently set a deadline to bonded warehouses of the State to clear their arrear levy by November 30, most of the bonded warehouses allegedly paid no heed to the order. Of the total 76 bonded warehouses in the State, 26 bonded warehouses paid the arrear levy below 30 per cent of the total payable amount, while of these 26 warehouses, 9 didn't pay a single rupee of their due arrear levy.

Sources said the amount of total arrear levy outstanding is Rs 220 crore, of which only Rs 93 crore was deposited by November 30 last.

The 9 bonded warehouses whose licenses stand temporarily cancelled are M/s John Smeal Pvt. Ltd., Cachar, M/s ANR Bonded, M/s Pegu BWH, M/s Putul Baruah BWH, M/s Gayatri Distilleries Bonded Warehouse, Laipuli, Tinsukia, M/s United Breweries (Com. Bond), Kamrup, M/s Diageo India Pvt. Ltd., Kamrup (NF), M/s Rangadao Bonded Warehouse and M/s BG Warehouse, Kamrup (US).   

Suklabaidya recently ordered the bonded warehouses to clear at least 30 per cent arrear levy, failing which he warned of action against defaulters.

The remaining 17 warehouses, which paid arrear levy from 1 per cent to 30 per cent of the payable amount, have been given December 31, 2016 deadline to pay 50 per cent of the payable amount.