The Indian Drug Manufacturers Association has appealed to all State Governments in the country along with the Union finance minister that the states should ensure the implementation of Value Added Tax (VAT) in a uniform manner at the same time. In order to facilitate a smooth financial year end for the publicly held member companies, the Association has also urged the State Governments to postpone the VAT implementation by 3 months to July.

The IDMA letter to all individual state finance ministers has emphasized that though the Association appreciate the government's move to introduce VAT throughout the country, it is necessary that all the states should implement VAT in a uniform manner.

Urging the real-time implementation of VAT, IDMA has requested to consider few more suggestions, which will help them to impress upon its members to whole-heartedly accept VAT.

The IDMA suggestion to the states includes an assurance from the governments that with the implementation of VAT there should be a single- point tax based on MRP only at the manufacturer's level for all medicines, which will ensure full realization of VAT in one step and ensuring the early receipts by states that would minimize VAT collection/assessment costs and avoid unnecessary work and harassment of intermediary traders.

The other two suggestion of the drug industry association is that no other tax and levies should be charged by any state. The Association has also pointed out that the month of March, being the financial year closing for most of our publicly held member companies, it would be convenient to them if the implementation is postponed by 3 months and make it effective from 1st July 2005.

The IDMA has also given the assurance that the industry is willing to work closely with governments in the successful transition from the current system to the single point tax system of VAT.