In the wake of a recent cabinet decision, the department has decided to tighten noose around the marriage industry and has asked the catering industry to charge VAT from their customers. Now, even ‘halwais’ would have to present cash memos and sales bills.

Officials in the Excise Department told The Indian Express that following the Punjab cabinet decision to bring the marriage palaces in the taxation net, the department started the process of registering caterers in the state.

Punjab Excise and Taxation Commissioner A. Venu Prasad said usually a caterer does not issue any bill for his services and thus there is no VAT deposited in the government coffers. “We have asked them to charge 12.5 per cent VAT,” he said.

Executive member of the Patiala Catering Association Prince Kharbanda said, “The customers do want to pay taxes. The only alternative left with is to hike the rates and later deposit VAT ourselves,” he added.

The department has further planned to appoint a special team to keep a check on every function in the district and if any one is found evading tax by under-billing or by any other means, heavy penalty would be imposed. “A communiqué in this regard has been despatched to every district wing and it will be soon implemented,” Prasad said.