Kochi: Though almost a year has lapsed after the Centre decided to permit airlines to directly import aviation turbine fuel (ATF), none of the airlines has been successful in importing ATF so far.
The Centre had taken the decision after the cash-strapped airlines' clamour that ATF accounted for about 50% of their operational cost in the domestic sector.
They had claimed that direct import of ATF would bring down their operational cost by at least 20% to 22% as they can then avoid paying sales tax which hovered around that level.
Some states had raised concern that the decision would affect their revenue streams. Kerala was levying about 29% sales tax on ATF and had generated Rs 58 crore revenue last year. The finance department was estimating that this might shoot up to nearly Rs 69 crores in the current fiscal, considering the growing demand. There were fears that the decision to permit direct ATF import would derail these estimates.
28/01/13 T Ramavarman/Times of India
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The Centre had taken the decision after the cash-strapped airlines' clamour that ATF accounted for about 50% of their operational cost in the domestic sector.
They had claimed that direct import of ATF would bring down their operational cost by at least 20% to 22% as they can then avoid paying sales tax which hovered around that level.
Some states had raised concern that the decision would affect their revenue streams. Kerala was levying about 29% sales tax on ATF and had generated Rs 58 crore revenue last year. The finance department was estimating that this might shoot up to nearly Rs 69 crores in the current fiscal, considering the growing demand. There were fears that the decision to permit direct ATF import would derail these estimates.
28/01/13 T Ramavarman/Times of India
