Aug. 21: More than 100,000 sweet shops in Calcutta and adjoining areas remained closed today to protest the Centre's decision of imposing GST on sweets.

In the new tax regime, all sweets will attract a GST of 5 per cent.

Sweet shops in Bengal say their products are made of cottage cheese unlike those in other parts of the country that are primarily made of kheer.

"Unlike the ones in north India, sweets made of cottage cheese in Bengal are highly perishable. The shelf life is not even 24 hours," Rabin Pal, general secretary, Paschim Banga Mishtanna Byabasayee Samity, said.

"Perishable items like vegetables and fish don't attract GST. So, why should mishti invite GST?"

A little over two decades ago, sweet shops in Bengal had managed to convince the then chief minister, Jyoti Basu, of keeping mishti out of the purview of sales tax.

In 2003, when Bengal decided to follow other states in introducing Value Added Tax (VAT), sweet shops and traders appealed to the then finance minister, Asim Dasgupta, and ensured that mishti remained out of its purview.

This time, the varying percentage of taxation has made things complicated, traders said.

Rosogolla, for example, invites a 5 per cent GST. But if it's chocolate flavoured, the GST will go up to 28 per cent, a trader said.

Similarly, sandesh falls in the flat 5 per cent category. But if it has a generous coating of kesar and pista, the percentage will go up. The GST for food items made of dry fruit is 18 per cent.

Paneer isn't within the GST ambit but packaged paneer with a registered brand name will invite 5 per cent GST, many sweet shop owners pointed out.

"Rosogolla will attract 5 per cent GST if it isn't tinned. But a tinned can will attract 18 per cent GST," Sudip Mullick of Balaram Mullick & Radharaman Mullick said.

"Some officials are saying mishti won't be discriminated against and that all items will attract 5 per cent GST. But there's still a lot of confusion."

Snacks such as kachori or singara fall in the 12 per cent GST tax slab. But if it's packed, the GST will shoot up to 18 per cent, a sweet shop owner said.

"Sales have dropped by almost 30 per cent," Dhiman Das of the KC Das said. "Sweet lovers have cut down on volume to keep expenses under control."