Liberation War Affairs Minister AKM Mozammel Haque has proposed to provide EFT machines in small shops as well as locally established big business establishments to increase government revenue by levying higher VAT from rural areas.
He said those who cannot afford the machine, the government will provide the machine on its own initiative. Later the shopkeepers will pay the price of the machine in installments. He also directed the deputy commissioners across the country to take necessary steps in this regard along with the internal resources department.
The proposal was made by AQM Mozammel Haque during the first session of the DC Conference held at the Osmani Memorial Auditorium in the capital on Tuesday.
He said, “Nowadays the capacity of the people at the village level has increased. There is a lot of shopping going on. However, the government is getting very little from the flow of money in this purchase. It is questionable whether those who are giving are also giving correctly.”
He therefore asked the Internal Resources Department to monitor the matter more closely. He also proposed to give one machine at a government initiative to small shops across the country through deputy commissioners.
In response to this Prime Minister's economic adviser Md. Mashiur Rahman said, “The proposal is good and logical. The National Board of Revenue has been working on this for a long time. However, it has not yet spread to all levels. EFT machines have reached villages in many areas. However, there are some technical issues with installing a machine in many areas and grassroots stores. There both buyer and seller will deal with technical issues. We are working on the issue, we will definitely go to that stage.”
During the discussion on the Ministry of Liberation War at the Deputy Commissioners' Conference, the Liberation War Minister said that two special memorials commemorating the Liberation War would be set up at the Kalurghat radio station in Chattogram and at the control area of Chattogram Airport.