THE WEST BENGAL FINANCE ACT, 2003

West Bengal Act III of 2003

[Relevant Extract]

[Passed by the West Bengal Legislature.]

[Assent of the Governor was first published in the Kolkata Gazette, Extraordinary, of the 31st March, 2003.]

An Act to amend the Bengal Amusements Tax Act, 1922, the Bengal Electricity Duty Act, 1935, the Bengal Agricultural Income-tax Act, 1994, the West Bengal Duty on Inter-State River Valley Authority Electricity Act, 1973, the West Bengal Taxation Tribunal Act, 1987 the West Bengal Sales Tax Act, 1994, and the West Bengal State Tax on Consumption or Use of Goods Act, 2001.

Whereas it is expedient to amend the Bengal Amusements Tax Act, 1922, the Bengal Electricity Duty Act, 1935, the Bengal Agricultural Income-tax Act, 1944, the West Bengal Duty on Inter -State River Valley Authority Electricity Act, 1973, the West Bengal Taxation Tribunal Act, 1987, the West Bengal Sales Tax Act, 1994, and the West Bengal State Tax on Consumption or Use of Goods Act, 2001, for the purposes and in the manner hereinafter appearing ;

It is hereby enacted in the Fifty-fourth Year of the Republic of India, by the Legislature of West Bengal, as follows:

1. Short title and commencement -

(1) This Act may be called the West Bengal Finance Act, 2003.

(2) Save as otherwise provided, it shall come into force on such date, or shall be deemed to have come into force on such date as the State Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, appoint, and different dates may be appointed for different provisions of this Act.

7. Amendment of West Ben. Act XLIX of 1994.- In the West Bengal Sales Tax Act, 1994,-

(1) in section 39, after sub-section (3), the following sub-section shall be inserted:-

"(4) Notwithstanding the provisions contained in sub-section (1), but subject to the provisions of sub-section (3), every dealer who has been enjoying, or has been entitled to enjoy, the benefit of exemption from payment of tax under sub-section (1), shall cease to enjoy such benefit of exemption on expiry of-

(a) five years from the date of his first sale of the goods manufactured in his newly set up small-scale industrial unit if such unit is situated within the area of the Kolkata Metropolitan Planning Area as described in the First Schedule to the West Bengal Town and Country (Planning and Development) Act, 1979; or

(b) seven years from the date of his first sale of the goods manufactured in his newly set up small-scale industrial unit if such unit is situated in any area other than the areas referred to in clause (a):

Explanation- For the purposes of this sub-section,-

(a) the expression "gross value of fixed assets", in relation to a newly set up small scale industrial unit, shall mean the aggregate of actual price or premium paid by the dealer for the land, whether freehold or leasehold, expenditure incurred by the dealer for construction of the factory shed, the cost of plant and machinery including those obtained on hire, lease, rent or loan and cost of pollution control equipment, on or before the date on which the tax becomes payable by such dealer for any return period.

(b) the aggregate of the benefit of exemption enjoyed by the dealer under this section shall, notwithstanding that the sale is exempt from tax, be determined in such manner, and within such time, as may be prescribed, on the basis of the appropriate rate specified in sub-section (1), or sub-section (2), of section 17 at which the sale would have been otherwise subjected to tax, if the dealer had not been enjoying the benefit of exemption under this section";

(a) in sub-section (1), in clause (a), for the words "a way bill in the prescribed form containing such particulars as may be prescribed,", the words "a way bill in the prescribed form, or such document, containing description, quantity or weight and value of the goods and such other particulars as may be prescribed," shall be substituted;

(b) after sub-section (2), the following sub-section shall be inserted,-

"(2A) Where it appears to the Commissioner that-

(a) due to failure of any person, dealer or casual trader, no way bill in the prescribed form or such document as mentioned in clause (a) of sub-section (1), as the case may be, could be produced by the transporter before him, or

(b) the way bill in the prescribed form or such document as mentioned in clause (a) of sub-section (1), produced is fake, false or incorrect in respect of the description, quantity or weight and the value of the goods transported, or

(c) the consignor of the goods does not exist at the address declared in the way bill in the prescribed form or such document as mentioned in clause (a) of sub-section (1), as the case may be,

(3) in section 88, in sub-section (1), after clause (e), the following clause shall be inserted:-

"(ee) fails to make full amount of penalty imposed under section 71B; or";

(4) after section 94, the following sections shall be inserted:-

"94A. Permit for exhibition-cum-sale - To ensure that there is no evasion of tax, every person intending to organise an exhibit-cum-sale of goods, shall obtain a permit from the prescribed authority in such form, and in such manner, as may be prescribed.

"94B. Penalty for organising exhibition-cum-sale in contravention of section 94A. - (1) Where any person contravenes the provisions of section 94A by organising an exhibition-cum-sale without obtaining permit, the Commissioner, the Special Commissioner or the Additional Commissioner may, after giving such person an opportunity of being heard, impose upon him a penalty not exceeding fifty thousand rupees.

(2) A penalty imposed under sub-section (1), shall be paid by the person upon whom it is imposed into a Government Treasury or the Reserve Bank of India by such date as may be specified by the authority referred to in sub-section (1), in a notice to be issued for this purpose, and the date so specified shall not be earlier than fifteen days from the date of issue of such notice:

Provided that the authority may, for reasons to be recorded in writing, extend the date of payment of the penalty for such period, as he may think fit.";

(5) in Schedule I, after serial No. 14A in column (1) and the entry relating thereto in column (2), the following serial No. in column (1) and entry relating thereto in column (2) shall be inserted:-

"14B. Gram flour or any other flour, commonly known as besan, when sold during the period from 1.5.1995 to 31.3.2003.";

(6) in Schedule IV in Part A,-

(a) in the entries in column (2) against serial No. 194A in column (1), for item (i), the following item shall be deemed to have been substituted with effect from the 1^st day of July, 1999:-

"(i) Textile fabrics of all varieties, other than those specified elsewhere in this Schedule or in any other Schedule";

(b) after serial No. 204 in column (1) and the entry relating thereto in column (2), the following serial No. in column (1) and entry relating thereto in column (2) shall be inserted:-

"204A. Gram flour or any other flour, commonly known as besan, other than those specified elsewhere in this Schedule or in any other Schedule";