No rise in inflation due to Swachh Bharat cess: Government

Inflation has not gone up since the imposition of Swachh Bharat cess in November, Rajya Sabha was informed on Wednesday.

Responding to a question on whether the cess had triggered a rise in inflation, Minister of State for Drinking Water and Sanitation Ram Kripal Yadav replied in negative.Answering other questions relating to the campaign, Yadav said the government has constructed 1.10 crore toilets including 60.88 lakh toilets this year, ever since Swachh Bharat Mission (Rural) was launched on October 2, 2014.

Yadav said in 2014-15, 58,54,987 latrines were constructed. Out of these, 49.49 lakh were built after the Mission was launched.

He also informed that 9.42 crore households in the country are without toilets.

"As per data furnished by states on the online Integrated Management Information System (IMIS), 9.42 crore households are without toilets as on November 26, 2015," Yadav said.

The Minister also informed the total fund requirement for implementing the Mission is estimated to be Rs 1,34,386 crore, out of which the central share is Rs 1,00,447 crore.

The government started imposing 0.5 per cent cess on all taxable services including air travel, telephony, eating out and banking to fund the Mission from November 15.

The additional cess would be over and above the 14 per cent service tax rate which is already being levied and may yield the government an additional about Rs 4,000 crore during the remainder of the current fiscal.