Ban on production and sale of salt was announced

- Antenna : Vivek Mehta

Second Namak Satyagraha begins in Gujarat: Salt manufacturers fight against government as more than 550 land leases of salt manufacturers are not renewed for 14 years

Second Namak Satyagraha is starting in Gujarat. Mahatma Gandhi protested the tax on salt by marching to Dandi for not paying the tax imposed on salt by the British to free the slave India. Now Namak Satyagraha Samiti has started a fight against the government from Gandhidham in Kutch district. This fight is for not renewing the lease of land leased for salt making. "If our demand is not met, we will stop the sale of salt in the whole of India

A presentation has been made to Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel regarding the problem of salt producers. Approximately 5 lakh people are getting direct employment through the salt industry of Gujarat. Due to non-renewal of lease, question is also being raised against their employment. More than 500 land lease applications are pending in Gujarat as of today. In the letter given to the Gujarat government, it has been stated that the lease allocated for ten to fifteen years of salt production is not being renewed. Pending applications for lease renewal are continuously increasing as the Gujarat Revenue Department has complicated the process of lease renewal. As a result of the rules made by the Gujarat government circular dated 18th July 2018, the salt lease holder cannot complete the process of renewing the leases for at least 5 to 10 years. The matter has been brought to the attention of the Revenue Minister, but the entire presentation has fallen flat. Not a single letter has been answered for the last four years.

No Objection Certificates of five different accounts have to be obtained to complete the process of allotment or renewal of rent lease. No Objection Certificates from all five accounts are not received on time. NOC within 90 days after applying for renewal of rent lease in the collector's office. have to give It is taking 200 to 600 days to issue NOC to lease holders in Gujarat even as the Prime Minister is trying to run everything on a fast track in the country. Having to push repeatedly to get NOC. If the government offices want this NOC within 30 days only. can give. But they lack will power.

As a result, the salt manufacturers do not get the required bank loans to expand their operations. The Gujarat government, which is blowing the flames of ease of doing business, is completely inactive on this issue. So the sweet manufacturers are ready to do salt satyagraha. From the month of October, we are preparing to stop the sale of Namak across the country. Since 80 percent of the production of salt in the country is done in Gujarat, the decision of the Namak Satyagraha Committee to stop the sale of salt will have a big impact.

Second, rent per hectare of land leased for salt is Rs. 150 to Rs. 300 has been made. According to the rule decided by the government itself, the lease rent has to be increased by 10 percent every three years. But these rules have been arbitrarily extended without any thought. Also, this additional burden has been removed from the year 2014. Through a circular in October 2014, instead of 10%, the rental amount has been increased by 15% and compound interest is being charged on it. This matter is weighing heavily on the manufacturers of Namak. Even though the issue has been repeatedly presented, the government does not listen. The demand of Namak Satyagraha Committee is that the lease rents should be increased by 10 percent only.

When proceeding for lease renewal in the Collector's office, the approval is being delayed by the officials of the district revenue department and the revenue department at Gandhinagar giving some reasons. This is increasing the distress of salt manufacturers. There should also be a single window system for lease renewal. A general guideline should also be prepared by the government for the easy implementation of this system. So that there will be no problem of pending applications for years. right now

In states other than Gujarat, no other taxes are added to it apart from lease rent-lease rents. In Gujarat, apart from rent leases, panchayat tax, panchayat cess and education tax are also being collected from rent lease holders. The tax rates are different in the 14 districts involved in the production of salt in the state of Gujarat. Giving an example, the Namak Satyagraha Ward Committee says that in Bhavnagar and Bharuch, per hectare Rs. 300 per hectare in addition to lease charges and various taxes. 1500 per hectare is being cultivated. We demand that the same rate should be charged in every district. A meeting of the collectors of all the 14 districts should be held and efforts should be made to ensure a uniform rate of salt production in Gujarat.