The impact of GST was felt in the temple cities of Tirumala and other temples at Tirupathi.
Lord Venkateswara, the richest deity in world, attracts crores of tourists every year and the GST slabs will adversely affect pilgrims coming to Tirupati.
According to hotels associations in Tirupati, there are more than 350 plus restaurants and over 200 hotels with boarding and lodging facilities which will be hit it is reported.
The hospitality industry plays a vital role in Tirupati and hundreds of lodges operate in the city.
The lodges which provide rooms at a low tariff were left free of tax earlier with a five percent luxury tax but GST has made only rooms with less than `1,000 exempt of tax. Most of the hotels charge a minimum of a Rs 1,000 and this attracts a 12 per cent tax. GST effect will also hit temple administrative body TTD.
“TTD is not exempted from GST. Srivari laddu’s making cost is about Rs 34, TTD is selling the same at Rs 25 and Rs 10 for some sections,” says a senior official at TTD.Now all the services including the prasadams especially Laddu will be taxed.
The TTD authorities have already decided to do away with the free laddus. Now with the GST they will not have any other option but to do away with the free laddus.
The GST authorities must think and see if they can do away with the GST for the Temples and other religious places. There is no doubt this will effect the religious tourism in the country.
The Gods services will be forced to work under the commercial angle. Now they are surviving under loss with the help of donations. But with GST they will run into red forcing them to rise the rates of Prasadams and also other services. Even rooms rent will also go up because of the GST.
