New Delhi, November 15 (Yes Punjab News)
The Chamber of Trade and Industry (CTI) has written to Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, seeking a reduction in the Goods and Services Tax (GST) on air purifiers and their filters from 18 per cent to 5 per cent amid worsening air pollution in Delhi-NCR.
CTI Chairman Brijesh Goyal said demand for air purifiers had increased nearly fivefold over the past few days as pollution levels worsened in the national capital. According to the traders’ body, shops that previously sold an average of four units daily were now selling around 20, with some companies running out of stock.
Goyal and CTI General Secretary Gurmeet Arora said the existing 18 per cent GST on air purifiers and HEPA (High-Efficiency Particulate Air) filters made the devices expensive and put them beyond the reach of many people.
Goyal said Delhi’s Air Quality Index (AQI) had crossed 400 and cited doctors’ concerns about the health impact of such pollution levels.
“Under these circumstances, an air purifier is no longer a luxury — it has become a necessity, akin to medicine. However, due to the 18 per cent GST, it remains beyond the reach of the common man,” he said.
The CTI has urged the government to bring air purifiers under the medical or healthcare devices category and reduce GST on replacement filters and essential components, including HEPA filters, carbon filters, UV lamps, motors and sensors, to 5 per cent from the current 18 per cent. It noted that filters generally need replacement every six months.
The traders’ body has also sought a reduction in GST on raw materials used to manufacture air purifiers in India from 12 per cent to 5 per cent. It said the move would help make locally manufactured products more affordable and reduce dependence on imports from China.
Beyond tax relief, the CTI has called for a special pollution relief package of Rs 5,000 crore for Delhi to support measures such as installing smog towers, developing green belts, washing roads and expanding AQI monitoring facilities.
It has also sought Rs 500 crore in central assistance to install air purifiers in government schools, hospitals, Anganwadi centres and 100 major markets across Delhi.
The organisation has further demanded financial relief for traders affected by pollution-control restrictions under the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP), including measures that lead to market closures. Its proposals include a six-month moratorium on equated monthly instalments (EMIs), a 2 per cent interest subsidy and special provisions for working capital loans.
“If the government can reduce GST on life-saving medicines, it should also reduce the GST on air purifiers — which serve as a ‘respiratory medicine’ of sorts,” Goyal said.
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