• Investment World
• eWorld
• Catalyst
• Mentor
• Life
• Canvas
• Praxis
• Urban Pulse
• Brand Quest

Our Bureau

Thiruvananthapuram , Dec. 26

THE Chamber of Commerce, Thiruvananthapuram, has urged the Twelfth Finance Commission to recommend to the Centre the implementation of the Kelkar Committee report and bringing the services of lawyers, doctors, hospitals and diagnostic centres under the tax net.

In a memorandum submitted to the Commission, the chamber also suggested exemption of information technology related products from all sorts of taxation.

Referring to State taxes, the chamber said sales tax and motor vehicles tax should be brought on a par with those of the neighbouring States.

Among other recommendations made were those on bringing down stamp duty and court fee to 2 per cent, fixing differential rates of court fee for business disputes and eliminating the backlog of unsettled cases by setting up more fast track courts.

Local bodies must introduce commercial accounting, computerise all activities and subject themselves to credit rating.

They should be allowed to raise funds through issuance of public bonds as also from non-resident Indians.

Government business should be outsourced to the extent possible, and the concepts of commercial accounting and external auditing practised if only as a means of bringing down Government expenditure.

Telephone, travel and related expenses of Government employees should be subjected to caps at all levels, starting with the Chief Secretary. The use of vehicles by Government employees wouldneed to be restricted.

The memorandum said the Government should ideally exit from all business by privatising such areas that are best left alone for others to engage themselves with. Government funding for public sector units should be stopped with and regular accounting made compulsory for all units. Chief executive officers must be held responsible for any lapses in this respect. Only trained professionals should be appointed as chief executive officers.

All roads and bridges projects in future should be implemented on the build-operate-transfer basis, with the Government role being reduced to just supervisory.

The local bodies could look after the implementation of minor roads and bridges projects. Maintenance of roads and bridges could be handed over to private agencies for a definite period of, say, five years.

It was the responsibility of the Government to provide quality education to all, the Chamber said.

The Government must provide scholarships to the needy, introduce compulsory grading of all educational institutions and give regular training and certification to all teachers.

Each citizen must be covered by a Government-sponsored health insurance scheme, the chamber suggested.

Article E-Mail :: Comment :: Syndication

Stories in this Section
227 MBA students get placements through Managemantra

Copyright © 2003, The Hindu Business Line. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu Business Line