Bakeries stores in Karnataka stopped serving tea, espresso, and milk on Wednesday in a protest on tax notices issued to small-scale companies by the Commercial Tax Department. Small vendors wore black badges and suspended beverage income for the day, accusing the department of unfairly concentrated on them.
Vendors protest in Karnataka over GST Notice
Labour activist Ravi Shetty, speaking from one of the protest site, said, “Today we’re wearing black bands on our hands. No bakery is selling milk. Only black tea is available as a mark of protest.”
The protest affected beverage counters in bakeries shops, even as all different business activity persisted as usual. In some stores, only black tea and black coffee served to customers. The agitation comes amid developing resentment from small vendors over the recent GST notices. Traders have warned of intensified protests if the notices not withdrawn.
Cash Only Policy Cause UPI Crackdown
CM Siddaramaiah of Karnataka has called a meeting at his house at 3 pm today to speak about the problem with representatives of the small investors.
The sweeping pressure has cause panic among small vendors in country, lots of whom have now switched to “cash-only” policy. The crackdown, based on records from UPI and other virtual payment platforms among FY 2021–22 and FY 2024–25, has brought about notices issued to vendors whose digital receipts crossed Rs 20 lakh (for services) or Rs 40 lakh (for items).
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