Vendors’ body seeks help from PM & Railway Minister for license fees relief

NEW DELHI: With the railways stations shut for passengers due to lockdown, the Akhil Bharatiya Railway Khan Pan License Welfare Association (ABKPLWA) has sought the intervention of Prime Minister Modi and Railway Minister Piyush Goyal seeking relief on license fees of the vendors involved in catering needs of passengers at railway stations.

“As all small licensee vendors who have deposited a considerable amount of license fee and provide assistance to their vendors, it is urged to take immediate decision and issue instructions to forego license fee as well as 18 per cent GST being paid to Railway by licensers periodically as per contracts,” said Rajinder Gupta, president of ABKPLWA, in a letter to Goyal.

“Since, Finance Ministry has taken note of the fact that likely intensity of virus diseases necessitate mobilisation of financial help to needy people and have announced various relief packages for weaker and daily wage workers in these days of crisis, the vendors association of

Indian railways network too seek measures to help lakhs of people associated with this business,” he said.

“While Ministry of Railways vide letter no TC-1/2019/201/2 dt.27-03-2020 has granted relaxation in demurrage—wharfage and Ministry of Finance vide letter No 23(4) for payment of wages to outsourced persons it is high time to forego license fee as well as GST of small catering vending licenses for March 2020 onwards to enable them help lakhs of families of railways catering vending vendors,” he said.