|
dailynews |
|
|
|
|
|
OTHER LINKS |
|
|
|
Monthly VAT paymentsTHE Inland Revenue Department has decided to collect VAT from the tax payers monthly from February 2006.It has been decided that the VAT payments must be paid on or before 20th of each month. As a company situated seventy miles out of Colombo, we prepared our accounts in time to pay at least by March 17 as it was a Friday. We kept waiting and waiting and the remmittance form never arrived by post. On the 20th morning, we made a phone call to the VAT Department of Inland Revenue, Colombo and asked them how we could make the payment without the form. They were unable to provide a reasonable answer and informed us that a remmittance form has to be collected from the VAT counter before making a payment. We had no other option but to send our accountant all the way to Colombo by special mode of transport to meet the deadline. If a vat remmittance is not made on or before the last date, the department impose a 10 per cent fine which is unavoidable. For a company paying around Rs. 500,000 VAT has to pay a fine of Rs. 50,000 in default of payment in time. We would like to know from the Inland Revenue VAT Department as to why they are unable to provide the remmittance forms to the tax payers in time avoiding all the hardships of the tax payers. After all, it is the tax payer who is collecting the much needed VAT from the public on behalf of the tax department. DTP Time change ITHERE seems to be lot of hot air being blown about the time change to bring it back to our original standard time which happens to be 5 1/2 hours ahead of GMT. 1. We were taught in the junior school about the calculation of time for each country or State. It is based on a sound basis regarding the rotation of the earth around the sun and does not depend on the whims and fancies of individuals, whatever their preferences may be. 2. The time for each country is dependant on the meridian of the country in the map and approximation is only made to the closest half hour for convenience. 3. Consequently countries and States in the same meridian will have the same standard time. Accordingly our standard time coincides with the Indian standard time before the time change was made. 4. Conversely countries having the same standard time are in the same meridian and can be easily located on the map. In fact some maps indicate the standard time + or - GMT on the map itself according to the meridian. 5. Certain countries put the clock forward during certain seasons for daylight saving. Such countries North or South of the tropics have a wide variation in the sunrise and sunset times during these seasons from the normal times. (3-4 hours difference) 6. Our country does not have such WIDE variations in the sunrise and sunset times and daylight saving is not so significant. Even in countries where the sunrise and sunset times varies by 3-4 hours, the clock is adjusted only by one hour (usually during summer). In view of the above let us hope saner counsel will prevail and our clock adjusted according to our geographical location which will be welcome by the majority. Even our astrologers and religious institutions follow the correct standard time and do not follow the present artificial time which is not based on any scientific calculation. DANVIL IIENGINEER Colvin de Zoysa's letter March 24 captioned: 'Arthur C. Clarke, astronomy, astrology and fiction writing' drew somewhat a parallelism to my thinking which I failed to express to the print media on time. United Kingdom is not the only Western country that adjust time routinely at the advent of winter. New Zealand, Australia and many other western countries that are subject to the four seasons, Autumn, Winter, Spring and Summer do adjust time routinely. Sri Lanka adjusted time, to lessen the burden of the cost factor of fuel on power generation. There is no gainsay that the adjustment of national time is a negative economic factor, may be in the short-run, may be in the long-run. Adjustment of time is implemented on the ultimate wisdom after taking all relevant factors into consideration. Hence I was also taken aback at the opinion expressed by Arthur C. Clarke. Mr. Zoysa also wrote on astrology in his brief letter. According to Buddhist scriptures, at the birth of Prince Siddhartha (who attained Buddhahood later) the astrologers in attendance predicted that Siddhartha would attain Buddhahood. But in contemporary times, I have yet to meet an astrologer who could predict an event correctly. RANJITH DODAMPEGAMA IIIREFERENCE Eng. Colvin de Zoysa's letter in reply to Sir Arthur C. Clarke's letter of Daily News dated 16.3.2006 under the heading 'Don't touch the clock'. We, the regular readers of Daily News gladly invite more eminent persons to express their views on this subject through the same column of Daily News. I hold in high esteem the views expressed by Eng. de Zoysa of Colombo 8 on this implicated subject. I humbly request the editor of Daily News to keep this debate open for sometime to enable some more eminent persons to express their views. D. E. ABEYWEERA Notified, but no actionI am a tax payer of the Dehiwala Mt. Lavinia Municipal Council; as the street light opposite my house was not functioning, I went to the Electricity Section of the Council on January 4 and lodged my complaint. As the matter was not attended I gave several reminders over the phone on a number of occasions. As I had no other alternative, then I complained once to the Mayor and then to the Municipal Commissioner on several days, but still the matter has not been attended to. A. A. Ellawela Maligawatte sanitationTHE Maligawatte sanitation was very low for some months since 2005. Now the sanitation is super. Garbage from the chute outlet of the flats is removed daily and the refuse from the pavement is removed as and when it is accumulated. The residents can go to their destinations and polling booth without offensive smell. Still there is one item to be attended to. The channels are full of sewage and bathroom water as the main manholes are not cleaned for months. The residents are helpless as they do not have technical knowledge and other equipment to remove the blockage which causes water stagnation and spreading of Dengue fever. Permanent repairs are to be done to the channels and manholes. This is an unpleasant state of affairs and the residents will be too happy if channels are cleaned at least weekly to result in a clear water flushing system. I hope that the health authorities that are concentrating well now on the sanitation of Maligawatte flat area will definitely continue to look into the blockage of channels too. THUNNAALAI S. A. MASILAMANY |
|
|
 |
 |