Noida: Taxpayers share their frustration with paying high taxes

Noida: At a time when inflation is disturbingly high, the taxes the citizens pay pinches even harder.

Although paying tax is important for building the nation, the question of how much tax is too much tax arises. For the common man, for who, getting through the month is no less than a challenge, the frequent revisions in the amount of taxes to be paid become a cause of worry. Team CitySpidey talked with a few residents all across Noida to know what taxpayers feel about the same.

Rajeev Sharma, President of RWA Sector 62 Rajat Vihar, says, "Apart from the Income-tax, we pay GST on all purchases and services. In India, the GST rate is the highest in the world. The maximum GST rate slab of 28% introduced by India is the highest among more than 140 countries across the world that have implemented GST. I feel Indian citizens should not have to pay taxes on everything. Our government should think about how to revise/minimize the taxes in India."

Brajesh Sharma, a government employee living in Noida says, "The tax we pay to the government is a major part of our income and what the government is giving us in return is a matter of thinking. We are crying for broken roads, safety, and streetlights. Our MP and MLA are not bothered to spend any money from their funds for any development. We are not happy with the enforcement of such tax collection."

Sushil Kumar Jain, President of the Market association Noida, Sector 18, says, "Nowadays, the rate of direct and indirect tax is increasing continuously on the goods and services. The taxes on some food items are unnecessarily high. The question arises, what should be the limit of tax? The tax should be equal to salt in the flour which should also fulfill the needs of the people and help the government in proper development."

Sushil Kumar Jain further said that the government should immediately withdraw the taxes imposed by the GST Council on food items. The GST  council should work on a uniform tax rate by bringing the 12% and 18% tax rates into the 15% tax bracket.

Shipra Gupta, a teacher from Greater Noida, says, "We, as the working class, are paying high taxes and not getting anything in return, such as medical facilities or schools for our children. After paying income tax, we further go for paying tax in the name of GST, service tax, property tax, etc, which gets a little hefty on us sometimes."

Manish Kumar, NEFOWA Senior Vice President, says, "We are forced to give taxes even if we buy the smallest of things and that's okay, what's not okay is the fact that the public is not getting anything from the government in return. Health and education are the basic need of any resident, however, Indians are still deprived of these basic things despite giving a huge amount of taxes."