Langars to get GST refund from Centre

NEW DELHI: The Centre will refund its share of goods and services tax charged on purchase of raw food items by charitable religious institutions for distributing free meals to the public, a move that will benefit

langars

run by gurdwaras and temples.


The culture ministry has issued an order saying that a a new scheme ‘

Seva Bhoj Yojana

’ has been cleared with an outlay of around Rs 325 crore for the current and the next financial year to take care of the tax liability. The scheme allowed for repayment of central GST and the Centre’s share of integrated GST paid for purchase of “specific items”, with the details to be notified shortly.

The move follows intense lobbying by SAD, an ally of the ruling NDA, and the

Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee

which had demanded that raw food material being purchased for langars served at gurdwaras be exempted from GST.