Cinema exhibitors and film producers have called for the reversal of a proposal by Delhi deputy chief minister and finance minister Manish Sisodia to double the level of entertainment tax to 40%. “If this proposal goes through, it will be the death knell for cinema exhibitors in Delhi,“ said Deepak Asher, president of the Multiplex Association of India. “New investments in this sector would dry up.“ Asher added that cinema owners are not only worried about margins getting hit but lower occupancy due to higher ticket prices.“What are they going to achieve with this? It will only add a minuscule amount to the government's coffers but it is a huge burden for the sector,“ said Mukesh Bhatt, president of the Film & Television Producers Guild of India in Mumbai. “We are taxed as an industry as much as alcohol and tobacco. All we are asking is to allow us to sustain ourselves.“
The Economic Times, New Delhi, 11th July 2015
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