As India battles the second wave of coronavirus infections with an acute shortage of medical equipment, representatives of the Indian diaspora are finding it difficult to send medical aid to NGOs, hospitals and civil society groups in the country.
The reason, they say, is a cumbersome eviction process and the IGST (Integrated Goods and Service Tax) rates. Even after arriving in India, there are several shipments of oxygen concentrators at airports due to IGST regulations.
A group representing the Indian diaspora in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, has launched a campaign to send medical aid to India.
“Support Humanity in India” started by Captain Sanjay Sharma collected 50 oxygen concentrators and sent them to India to help Covid-19 patients. While the group plans to ship 1,000 oxygen concentrators, managing the logistics has become a “nightmare”.
Initially, the Indian government was unwilling to exempt IGST from imports by private entities to NGOs and other organizations that help support Covid. The exemption only applied to contributions made to the Indian government through the Indian Red Cross Society.
This decision has been revised and all imports for Covid relief have been exempted from IGST. However, the exemption came with drivers.
Medical help from ‘Support Humanity in India’.
“We have received several inquiries from different parts of India and we want to help them. It shouldn’t be such a difficult process if we just want to save the lives of the Indians,” said Captain Sanjay Sharma.
He added that since the group received calls from hospitals and NGOs across the country, they decided to send medical help directly to them instead of sending it through the Indian Red Cross Society.
“The Indian Embassy told us that if we donate through the Red Cross, we don’t have to pay 12 percent IGST and air freight from the Netherlands to India. I had written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Interior Minister Amit Shah, and Delhi Prime Minister Arvind Kejriwal is supposed to Airborne oxygen concentrators from the Netherlands free of charge and freeing 12 percent IGST from them. We have received no response, “said Captain Sharma.
The organization later found an agency that would supply the oxygen concentrators free of charge.
“The forwarding team of the global logistics service provider GEODIS, which works with Qatar Airways CARE, provided us with efficient and timely support in relocating this shipment from Amsterdam to India. We appreciate your selfless and dedicated efforts,” said Captain Sharma.
Meanwhile, the Union Treasury Department issued a notice on May 3 exempting basic duties and / or health taxes on imports of a number of Covid-19-related relief items for a limited period until June 30.
The announcement said the central government has received a number of representations from nonprofits, corporations and other associations outside of India requesting an exemption from IGST for importing Covid-19 supplies that are free of charge from outside India for free distribution was donated / received.
However, these exceptions are subject to the following conditions:
- The relevant state / UT government shall designate a node authority in the state for the purpose of this exemption.
- The node authority authorizes every company, every aid organization or every legal institution to distribute this Covid aid material free of charge.
- The goods mentioned can be imported free of charge by a state government or an institution / aid organization / legal body that is approved for free distribution throughout India in this regard.
- Before customs clearance, the importer must submit a certificate from the node authorities mentioned that the goods are intended for free distribution to alleviate Covid.
- After importation, the importer must submit a simple declaration with details of the imported goods and distributed free of charge to the deputy or deputy customs commissioner in the port within six months.
- This declaration must be approved by the state node authority.
The first shipment of these critical supplies landed at Mumbai Airport from Amsterdam at around 3:30 p.m. on May 3. However, it got stuck with customs as officials demanded the Integrated Tax on Goods and Services (IGST).
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“After waiting all day, we learned that the government had waived IGST. We were relieved, but it was short-lived as the conditions to be met are so lengthy that there are further delays would have come. We didn’t do this. ” I want people to suffer more and therefore be paid close to Rs. 3 lakh as IGST, “said Shekhar Roy Chowdhury, Member of Support Humanity in India.
At the time of this report’s publication, the shipment was still awaiting customs clearance in Mumbai.
Captain Sharma says the IGST they paid is “not reflected” in the system, adding further delay to the distribution of oxygen concentrators.
“I can’t understand why we don’t get any help from the Indian government when people are dying. Every minute is important for people in need of oxygen support,” said Prakash Ayer.
Captain Sharma says her group is trying to get 1,000 more oxygen concentrators and other medical equipment to be sent to India to aid.
“It will be a total waste of money if we pay 12 percent IGST. The amount can be used to get more items. It will be very difficult to find a node officer to sort this out,” he says.
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