Annual Cess On Agricultural Land Holdings Proposed

For the first time in the country, farmers will be asked to pay an annual cess on their land holdings. Under the Agricultural Labour Bill, which will be placed before Parliament next month, all farmers owning more than one hectare of land will be required to pay a minimum cess ranging from around Rs 100 to Rs 1,000 per year.

The proceeds will be pooled into a district welfare fund for farm labourers. The bill is expected to benefit more than 100 million agricultural labourers across the country.

The placing of the bill in Parliament was delayed as there was no unanimity among the states and political parties over the levying of cess on farmers. But, following a consensus on the issue, the bill is expected to have a smooth passage in the House.

 

The bill was on the agenda of Tuesdays cabinet meeting, but a decision was deferred as the government wanted the approval of all the states before placing it in the House.

Union labour minister M Arunachalam is now expected to convene a meeting of the chief ministers for their views on the bill before it is introduced in Parliament.

According to the proposed bill, farmers who own less than one hectare will be exempted from paying cess. A minimum cess of around Rs 100 per year will be levied on farmers owning between one hectare and two hectares, around Rs 200 for those owning between three and four hectares, around Rs 500 for those owning between five and 10 hectares and for those owning more than 10 hectares, around Rs 1,000 will be charged.

The cess will cover both irrigated and non-irrigated lands. However,Farmers with less than 1 hectare of land to be exempted from paying cess

Rs 100 on owners of between and 2 hectares Rs 200 on owners of between 3 and 4 hectare Rs 500 on owners of between 5 and 10 hectares Rs 500 on owners of more than 10 hectares Welfare fund to benefit 100 million farm labourers the states will be free to implement the norms based on the topography and the weather conditions of a place.

The district welfare fund will provide maternity benefits to women labourers, guaranteeing security of wages and ensuring safe drinking water for them.

Though a similar kind of law exists in Kerala, other states have been wary of enacting such a legislation owing to pressure from the farmers' lobby. Hence, the National Commission on Rural Labour had suggested that a Central legislation should be enacted so that states would be forced to enforce the guidelines.

A comprehensive legislation to improve the conditions of work of agricultural labour was under consideration since the last 10 years. A draft bill finally took shape during a meeting of state labour ministers and labour secretaries with the Union labour minister in May, 1995. However, it was decided at the meeting that flexibility in implementation should be built in, keeping in view the constraints faced by the state governments.

Now insurance cover is provided to the landless agricultural labourers. Under this scheme, 12 million landless agricultural workers are covered in 22 states, besides the Union territories. About Rs 2,000 is paid to the kin of the deceased workers.