Saudi, UAE VAT may adversely affect majority of Indian expats

Agencies
January 3, 2018

Hyderabad, Jan 3: Introduction of Value Added Tax (VAT) by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) would adversely affect a majority of Indians working there and reduce their remittances, said a former diplomat.

"I would say 70 to 80% of Indian community there will be adversely affected," said Talmiz Ahmad, the former Indian Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Oman and the UAE.

The size of the Indian community in Saudi Arabia and the UAE is three million and 2.8 million, respectively, he said.

Of them, the lower-middle-class and middle-class sections will get affected the most as they are already feeling the pressure on account of high cost of living, Ahmad said.

"This is on account of rent, medical expenses, school fees, transport and high cost of essential items. Therefore, cost of living has gone up quite significantly in the last two years," he said.

The adverse impact on the labour community which is provided accommodation by the employer and blue-collar workers who are "protected" by their companies would be comparatively less, he said.

"As it is, the cost of living there (Saudi Arabia and the UAE) is quite high," he said. "Obviously, the low paid Indian expatriates will be adversely affected."

"I have a feeling, as it is because of the fall in oil prices and reduction in employment, the remittances have already reduced in the last two or three years," Ahmad said.

"The remittances from the Gulf have already come down; earlier it was about $35 billion; I think it would have come down to USD 30 billion. Yes, there will be a further small reduction (following the introduction of VAT) because this income will no longer be available to the person to remit," Ahmad said.

Saudi Arabia and the UAE introduced VAT from January 1, a first for the Gulf. Reports said the 5% sales tax applies to most goods and services.

Comments

Jacob
 - 
Wednesday, 3 Jan 2018

OWN MOTHERLAND INDIA... nver before 70 yers we have had such suffering...due to demonetization and GST together with DIGITAL INDIA is making life MOST SUFFERED..Trust and hope our PM will withdraw something to BENEFIT THE POOR

Ibrahim
 - 
Wednesday, 3 Jan 2018

King wont trouble Indians. He is so generous

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News Network
August 9,2020

Bengaluru, Aug 9: Swollen rivers and flood-like situation continue to threaten lives and property in several parts of Karnataka that have been ravaged by torrential rains over the last few days.

Though there has been a respite from the downpour in some parts, rivers continue to flow above the danger mark, inundating low lying areas in several parts of Malnad, coastal and interior Karnataka.

There are also reports of continued landslides in hilly areas of Kodagu and Chikkamagaluru.

In Dakshina Kannada, heavy rains have submerged several areas in Bantwala and Belthangady, among others, with the Netravati river overflowing and also water being released from nearby dams.

Officials said incessant rains in Cauvery river catchment areas have led to increased inflow in the Krishna Raja Sagara dam in Mandya district. Water is being released from it and people living in low lying areas have been warned, they said.

There is also a flood-like situation in Najanagudu and nearby areas of Mysuru as the swollen Kapila river has inundated roads connecting Ooty in neighbouring Tamil Nadu, with water being released from Kabini dam.

There has been some respite from heavy rains in certain parts of Kodagu, which has been ravaged by floods and landslides. However, several areas of the district continue to be in deluge with the Cauvery and Lakshmana Tirtha rivers overflowing due to rains in the hilly areas.

There are also reports of landslides in some parts of the district.

Meanwhile, continuing rains are hampering the search operation by NDRF and authorities to locate five people, including the priest at Talacauvery, the origin of the river Cauvery, who had gone missing due to massive landslides at Bramhagiri hills on Wednesday night.

There are also reports of landslides at a few places in Charmadi ghat region of Chikkamagaluru and the road connecting to Dakshina Kannada has been closed temporarily.

Though Belagavi district has had some respite from the heavy rains, flood like situation continues to persist as the Krishna river and its tributaries are swollen due to continued inflows because of rains in neighbouring Maharashtra.

Inflow has also increased to the Tungabhadra dam of Ballari district due to rains in the catchment areas of Shivamogga and Chikkamagaluru.

Authorities have alerted people living in low lying areas about opening dam gates to release water anytime with rising inflow.

There is a similar flood like situation in parts of Yadgir, Raichur and Bagalkote districts with water being released from various dams.

The state government has released ₹ 50 crore for emergency relief and has announced ₹ 10,000 as immediate relief each to affected families.

An amount of ₹ 5 lakh has been announced for completely damaged houses, while in the case of partially damaged ones, relief will be distributed considering the extent of damage.

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News Network
May 9,2020

Chikkamagaluru, May 9: Karnataka Minister for Tourism C T Ravi on Friday said that Indians who are stranded abroad are being repatriated into the country on the pre-condition of quarantine.

“The Centre is repatriating Indians who are stranded in around 37 countries, amid the lock-down, of which people from Saudi Arabia and Dubai will be brought via ship for free. These people will have to undergo the mandatory quarantine period once they land in the country,” Ravi told media here.

The government has accorded priority to the elderly and pregnant women during the repatriation process. The state government has held due discussions with the Centre in this regard, he added.

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News Network
January 15,2020

Mangaluru, Jan 15: Thousands of people on Wednesday boarded boats from Ullal's Kotepura to join a massive protest against the amended Citizenship Act and National Register of Citizens (NRC) in Adyar here.

People travelling through boats and steamers decorated with national flags, raised slogans during their journey through the Netravathi River.

The innovative mode of transportation was used by the protestors to reach the venue, as it not only saved time but was also more convenient for the fishermen, as large number of people from this community joined the protest.

The protestors docked their boats at the shore, which was barely 500 metres from the site of protest, being held at Shah Ground in Adyar.

The distance between Kotepura to the Shah Ground is approximately 15 kilometres but protesters would have to walk more five kilometres to reach the venue because of heavy traffic.

Due to protest, the national highway was also blocked and resulted in huge traffic snarls on routes leading to agitation site. 

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