Thursday, July 18, 2013: Despite the bandh, which was called by the Federation of Associations of Maharashtra, many shops remained open in areas like Nigdi, Pimpri Camp, Akurdi and Chinchwad. The two day strike against the local body tax saw a poor response on the first day this Monday. Gajanan Babar, a Shiv Sena MP and the President of FAM for the Pimpri – Chinchwad region was supported by 23 associations of small traders, shopkeepers, cloth traders, fruit sellers and some hotels who are leading the protests. According to Babar the government hasn’t yet taken any decision against the LBT despite announcements from the Chief Minister that alternatives need to be explored.
In many areas, the shops were either half open and many were closed only after the federation appealed to them. However, the bandh to protest against the LBT got tremendous response from Nasik. Business communities, traders and even petrol pumps were closed down in support of the bandh along with groceries, shops, jewelry showrooms, stationary stalls and cloth stores, for the two days that the bandh had been called for. Closing of petrol pumps cased a lot of distress to the general consumer. The Nasik district petrol and diesel pump owner’s association has submitted a memorandum to the Nasik Municipal Commissioner (NMC) that demanded abolition of the LBT.
According to Shankar Takekar, the president of the association, LBT rate for petrol pumps in Nasik is 3 per cent, a lot greater than rates in other cities. As a result, people prefer to fill fuel from other areas and avoid pumps in Nasik. The Pune Municipal Corporation has now marginally reduced LBT on many items.
