Hundreds of workers have formed a human chain to protest the ‘conspiracy oriented’ tax hike on bidi from the Fiscal Year 2020-21 which already has affected the livelihood of several lakh ultra-poor workers, traders and cultivators amid the coronavirus pandemic.
The National Board of Revenue (NBR) has hiked the tax on bidi influenced by a vested quarters of cigarette companies to loss the country’s long traditional tobacco farming and trading.
Speakers said this in a protest rally chaired by Bangladesh Bidi Sramik Federation Vice-President Nazim Uddin organized by Kustia Bidi Sramik Federation held at Public Library premises in the district town yesterday.
They have placed some six demands, including withdrawal of recently hiked of tax Tk 4 per cent in each packet of bidi, removal of 10 per cent advanced income tax on bidi, declare the bidi as the cottage industry and hiking the wages of labors, creating three price level classification like cigarette, steps for ban the counterfeit bidi production, marketing and sale immediately forming the bidi industry preservation act.
Meanwhile, Kustia district Sramik League President Md Anwarul Haq and its Labour Affairs Secretary Md Golam Mostafa expressed solidarity with their demand and they urged the government, Including PMO, Finance Ministry and National Board of Revenue (NBR) to meet the demands of the demonstrators.
Besides, citing that there was no tax on bidi during the regime of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, and the Premiere’s previous instruction to reduce tax on bidi industry for fiscal year 2009-10 as the livelihood of workers, traders and cultivators run smoothly, Bangladesh Bidi Workers Federation’ Executive President Amin Uddin BSc, said, the NBR authorizes ignoring the instructions, influenced by the vested quarters of cigarette companies, have increased 4 per cent tax in each packet of bidi from the beginning of the current fiscal year while they hiked only two per cent tax in each packet of low and medium level cigarettes that clear the conspiracy against the bidi industry.
He urged the governed to fix the price of each packet of the low quality cigarette at Tk 100 while each packet of bidi Tk 10 only and taking initiatives.
Bangladesh Bidi Workers Federation’s (BBWF) General Secretary Abdur Rahman, Organizing Secretary Abdul Gafur and Joint Secretary Herik Hossain, among others, spoke in the program.
