Page:Indian Journal of Economics Volume 2.djvu/338

 8fi4 $. M. PAGAR ministers o! religion, the ministers of justice, the government ofticers, and men of the army and navy.  () Tl&e Lice Taz. At any rate the Indian Government, with a view to avoid a vast deficit, levied a license tax in 1867 according to a graduad scale on all professions and trades, ranging from 4 rupees  25 rupees in such a way that the rate should in no case exceed 2 per cent, the minimum license ee being Rs. 4 on all profits of Rs. 200 and less than 'Rs. 500 a year, while the maximum license fee was no less than Rs. 500. s Persons in the public service, though they did not have to take out a license, were subject o the tax. Military officials not in civil employ, whose pay and allowances did not exceed Rs. 6,000 pr annum, and the Government employees with a salary of less than Rs.l,000 a year were .not liable to the tax. Cultivators of land, not keeping a shop ,for the sale o! produce, which would be equivalent to' practis- ing a trade, the land-lords, and the hou_se-holders, were also exempted. On the whole this was an improvement over Income Tax Act of1860 under which agricultural incomes were assessed. But it was, like most other license taxes, unjust in that it fell mainly on the small traders; moreover those who made higher profits also paid the same rate, that is 2 per cent or even less in the case of those whose profits were. more than Rs. 25,000 a year. Add to this the small minimum allowed, and the favoritism shown to the Government employees with a salary of less than Rs. 1,000 a year. I Moral and Material Progress of India, 1882-8, p. 176. S The defioit for 1866-7 was 2,000,000. It was also in this yesr that Indian fisoal year was made to oorrespond with the British fisoal year. lJ The following soale was adopted :-- Bs. 4 on profits from trades of Bs. 200 and lsss than Rs. 500. Rs. l0 on profits from trades of Bs. )0 and less than RS. 1000. Rs. 20 on profits from tradss of Bs. 1000 and less than Bs. )00. Re. 100 on profits from trsdes of Re. 6000 and less than Re. 10,000. the