Health bill in LS amid Opposition demand for select panel
NEW DELHI: Amid concerns by the opposition, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman moved the Health Security and National Security Cess Bill, 2025, in Lok Sabha on Thursday, asserting that the proposed cess will be levied only on demerit goods, like pan masala, and not on essential commodities, and revenue from the levy will be shared with states for spending on health schemes. The purpose of the bill is to create a dedicated and predictable resource stream for two domains of national importance health and national security, said Sitharaman. This is a cess, and it is placed not on any essential commodity. We wish to impose such a cost so that it is a deterrent, so people tend not to use it, she said. Sitharaman said pan masala will be taxed at the maximum 40% rate under Goods and Services Tax (GST) based on its consumption, and there will be no impact of this cess on GST revenues. However, participating in the debate on the Bill, several opposition MPs demanded that the bill should be sent to a select committee, voicing concerns that it will hurt the MSME sector and revive inspector raj. Accusing the Centre of relying excessively on cesses to raise revenue, DMK MP Sumathi termed it as cessification of governance, not justification of governance. Sumathi pointed out that the finance minister herself noted how sharply cess revenues have risen. Ambedkar had warned that good intentions are of no value if the instruments are flawed. This bill is precisely that good intentions trapped in a flawed instrument, she said and claimed that MSMEs would be hit the hardest by it. Opening the debate in the Lower House, Congress MP Varun Chaudhary warned the proposed legislation would revive inspector raj and that a capacity-based cess would increase bureaucratic interference.TMC MP Saugata Roy questioned whether the cess would deter the pan masala industry, as he noted its enormous profits. He argued that government was so desperate for funds that it was now depending on demerit goods to finance national security. You need money. The Parliament building cost `20,000 crore; the PMs Sewa Teerth will cost hundreds of crores. Now, for that, take money from pan masala? The government is thinking on two lines: on one hand, it spends money like water on unnecessary buildings; on the other, it taxes pan masala to fund security, Roy said.
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