Srilanka, June 30 -- The National Book Traders Association warns that the price of printed books in Sri Lanka has risen by 20% due to the imposition of Value Added Tax (VAT) and the Nation Building Tax (NBT).Speaking at the Association's anniversary event, Samantha Indeewara, President of the Sri Lanka Book Publishers Association, highlighted that the cost of books has sharply increased due to recent tax changes.

"The price of a book has gone up by 20%-that's one in five," Indeewara stated. "Previously, there was no VAT on printed books, while items like stationery carried a 15% VAT. Now, confusion between these categories and the new tax policy has led to unjust price hikes."

He further mentioned that the Presidential Secretariat had ...