WIPE THAT TAX

CONGRESS MP Sushmita Dev has written to Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and sought a reduction in taxes on sanitary napkins —- at par with condoms and contraceptives, which are tax-free as they are recognised as a necessity. Sanitary napkins are taxed up to 14.5 per cent - the tax varies from state to state - and are proposed to be taxed at 12 per cent under GST, which is akin to treating an essential hygiene product as a luxury item, Dev pointed out.