Chandigarh: Punjab traders today asked the GST council to consider bringing down the GST rate on dry dates to 5 percent at par with raisins and cashew nuts from 12 percent at present. Traders raised this demand as the 23rd meeting of the GST Council started in Guwahati today.  

"We are demanding from the GST council to reduce the GST on dry dates from 12 percent at present to five percent as in the case of raisins and cashew nuts," said All India Dry Dates Association, President, Anil Mehra said today.   

Dry dates are imported from Sukkur in the Singh province of Pakistan. Mehra said about 20 lakh bags (70 kg per bag) of dry dates are imported annually from the neighbouring country. "Currently, the landed cost of dry dates stands at Rs 42 per kg and if the GST on this item is reduced, its cost will drop by Rs 3 per kg," Mehra said.   

He pointed out that GST on raisins and cashew nuts was charged at 5 per cent.   The imported dry dates are supplied in various states including Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh.