Nearly one lakh textile establishments across Andhra Pradesh have decided to shut their shops on Wednesday and Thursday protesting the levy of four per cent VAT (Value Added Tax) on textiles and related items.

"Nowhere in the country VAT has been levied on textiles. Even states like Maharashtra where nearly 30 per cent of the textile trade takes place, did not venture to implement VAT. Andhra Pradesh government should realise that at least one crore population of the state directly or indirectly is related textile trade and reconsider its decision," Soma Dayanand, general-secretary of Andhra Pradesh Federation of Textiles Associations, told PTI.

He said despite repeated representations, the government tried to implement VAT.

The textile industry was closed for more than 10 days in 1950 protesting against the levy of sales tax on textiles then and subsequently it was withdrawn.

Since then states were getting a share in additional excise duty, which was also abolished recently. In order to compensate the lost revenue, the state government tried to levy VAT, Dayanand alleged.

Cloth merchants and textile traders in other cities like Visakhapatnam and Vijayawada also closed shops in response to the bandh call given by the textile associations.

Textile traders observed one-day bandh protesting against the VAT in July. The state government issued a government order (GO) imposing VAT on textiles from July 11 onwards.