'Treat Negative Subsidy As Pre-Paid Tax By Farmers'

Shetkari Sanghatana leader Sharad Joshi has suggested that the negative subsidy suffered by farmers in the last three years be considered as advanced tax paid on any amount due from them, in case the Union finance ministry imposes tax on agricultural income.

Besides, he felt that if agrarian tax was to be imposed, the assessment should be conducted on an individual basis and should not be a blanket one.

"Since the government has admitted of negative subsidy, the last three years negative subsidy should be considered as advanced tax paid by the farmers," Joshi said.

"If the income tax collection is to be increased and extended to agriculture, then I want privileges of paying income tax and income to pay there on. I don't think the finance minister will be well advised to address the problem of fiscal deficit by increasing revenue. This way he would tax the producers and help the parasites_the bureaucracy," he stated.

 

Since the finance minister was unable to bring down the administrative expenditure, the government was now thinking of taxing the agricultural sector, Joshi said.

Quoting ministry of commerce figures, Joshi pointed out that the negative subsidy on the farming community in the country was

Rs 1,13,000 crore per annum on 17 commodities alone.

Several states in the country have already been imposing tax on agricultural income. "Apart from land revenue tax, the government of Maharashtra has imposed income tax on agricultural produce at 30 per cent," he said.

Joshi said the Indian farmer was the most heavily taxed, since he payed a turnover tax of 87 per cent, as admitted by the ministry of commerce.