BHADRAPUR: The Appellate Court, Ilam on Friday has issued an interim order not to impose export tax on ginger as there has been a notable increment in the figure.

The court issued the order staying the imposition of such tax until another decision is taken in that connection. The Appellate Court issued the order in response to a writ challenging the imposition of Rs 5,000 export tax on ginger per truck by Jhapa District Coordination Committee.

The Committee started charging tax on ginger exported to India via the Kakarbhitta transit point. The writ was filed by Nepal Ginger Producers' Association on Thursday.

The court has called the defendants Jhapa District Coordination Committee for an explanation on the issue on September 11. Before this, Jhapa District Development Committee had been charging Rs 700 as export tax per truck of ginger. But the District Coordination Committee increased it to Rs 5,000 per truck.

Likewise, the Indian government has also increased tax on ginger exported from Nepal by Rs 2,000 per truck at a time when dispute over export tax on ginger has been heating up in Kakarbhitta.

"India had been charging Rs 7,000 per truck of ginger as tax before the imposition of GST. It was Rs 11,000 per truck after the imposition of GST. Now, it has been increased to INRs 13,000 per truck," said Acting President of the Association, Tomlal Rajbanshi. According to Rajbanshi, the tax increment both in Nepal and India has put a big burden on the ginger producers.

Meanwhile, 14 trucks of ginger exported from Nepal are stranded at the Indian customs for the past one week in pretext of quarantine test. Indian customs officials have said they have sent samples of the ginger to Bangalore for quarantine test and have not received the report yet. It is said it will take a week for the report to come back.

Rajbanshi said, the Indian customs would not allow the trucks to leave for their respective destinations until the quarantine test results was received.