Airline industry deserves tax breaks: GoAir

Bangalore, Feb 29 (UNI) The airline industry is disappointed that it has not been provided with any tax breaks in the budget proposals for 2008-09, GoAir Managing Director Jeh Wadia said today.

In his reaction to the union budget, he said the sales tax on ATF at 29 per cent on an average remained the same for airlines using large aircraft.

However, the plus points were that the budget had focused on the issues directly impacting the common man in terms of education, healthcare, insurance and agriculture. This was definitely a people-driven budget and not a corporate-driven budget, he said.

Mr Wadia said the Custom Duties and Excise Tax still remained on ATF. Withholding Tax on Leases remained between 11 per cent and 92 per cent, while withholding tax on interest remained between five per cent and 20 per cent.

''We feel that all of us in the Indian aviation sector need to continue our efforts to make the Government feel and realise that there is an urgent need to bring the cost of operations in the Indian aviation sector on par with international standards and the biggest enabler to achieve this is reduction in taxes,'' he added.

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