Daijiworld Media Network – Udupi (EP)
Udupi, Jul 15: Udupi district Mahila Congress committee expressed their displeasure about the levy of 12% GST on sanitary napkins, in a letter to the Prime Minister, recently.
In a letter addressed to the Prime Minister via the deputy commissioner of Udupi, they said that the 12% GST on sanitary pads is condemnable. “It should have been treated as a necessity instead of considering it as just another commodity,” they stated in the letter.
“Some women's organisations sent letters to you and the finance minister about the same before GST was imposed. GST on this product is an anti-women move,” they stated.
“Bangles, bindi, birth control pills and condoms are charged a 0% GST. Why then are sanitary napkins not included in the list of essential items, in the same tax slab? We request you to respond to the feelings of women in the country who comprise 50% of the population and make sanitary napkins tax-free,” they demanded in their letter.