FTCCI and ITCHA delegations met the GST Chief Commissioner of GST & Customs, Hyderabad Zone and thanked him for his support in resolving Industry Grievances

The Federation of Telangana Chambers of Commerce and Industries (FTCCI) delegation led by its president Suresh Singhal and the Information Technology Corridor Hostels Association (ITCHA) by P. Amarnath Reddy, President of the Information Technology Corridor Hostels Association (ITCHA) together with GST Committees Chairman, CA. Mohd. Irshad Ahmed and members of both organisations met Shri. Sandeep Prakash, IRS, Chief Commissioner of Hyderabad GST & Customs Zone today at his office.

They thanked him for the support extended in taking forward the grievances of the industry members, particularly on the exemption granted for accommodation services up to Rs. 20,000/- per month per person staying in P.G. Accommodations and Private Hostels.

GST Council granted an exemption for hostel fees. ITCHA has 3000 members, mostly hostels and PG (Paying Guest) Accommodation in and around IT Corridor in the city. This exemption will benefit 3.5 to 4 lakh students, working class staying in those hostels.

Members of the FTCCI and ITCHA stated that this will be a significant relief as the accommodation services are available mostly by the students and working class who stay in the hostels either for their studies or for work. This relief will particularly help in reducing the burden of GST on such a class of persons. This will also ease the burden of tax compliance on the hostel owners who are mostly small and medium scale entrepreneurs.

The tri-city of Hyderabad, Secunderabad and Cyberabad has well over 9000 to 10000 Hostels and PGs (identified and well-to-do accommodations only) and nearly 10 lakh people mostly students, fresh workforce, and people who work in malls etc. stay in those accommodations. There used to be two slabs of 12 and 18% taxes and there used to be a lot of confusion. It used to be a big financial burden on the people staying in those accommodations as well as the compliance burden on the people who run the hostel.

Though thousands of hostels and PG accommodations exist in bigger cities like New Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore and Chennai, no city like Hyderabad has a strong association like ITCHA. No other city in India can boast of a strong association as strong as ITCHA. It has three thousand members across the IT corridor. 

According to ITCHA office bearers, the association plans to expand its footprint to hostels in other parts of the tri-city very soon.