The Hindu Business Line : Kerala planters want agri I-T abolished

The Association of Planters of Kerala (APK) has urged the State Government to abolish the Agricultural Income Tax (AIT) or at least bring it on par with Central Income Tax rates.

Speaking at the 69th annual general meeting of the Association here, its Chairman, Mr David B. King, also appealed to the government to initiate steps to get the Kerala Land Reforms (Amendment) Bill 2004, which was introduced and passed by the State Legislature, the Presidential Assent so as to bring it into force without further delay.

Once enforced, the Bill will allow plantations to use land not exceeding 5 per cent of their total extent for floriculture or for the cultivation of vanilla, medicinal plants and other agricultural crops for establishing hotels, resorts and other tourism projects.

“The proposed diversification as envisaged in the Bill will only generate more employment in plantations and any apprehension in this regard is baseless,” he said.

The APK has also urged the government to abolish payment of plantation tax as such taxes would take away the competitive edge vis-À-vis other States, that too at a time when all are trying to be cost-competitive at all levels.

He said that the government has not taken a decision on the long-pending demand of the Association to shift the plantations from High Tension-I industrial category to HT-III agricultural category. “It has reached a situation now that we have no alternative but to submit a petition before the State Electricity Regulatory Commission,” he said.

The APK, he said, feels let down that the report of the Joint Committee appointed by the Plantation Labour Committee (PLC) to study tea productivity in plantations has not been given its due consideration.

“Whenever the question of linking of wages to productivity and efficiency came up, the political will seems to be lacking and this is adversely affecting all the industries specially the plantations where the cost of labour wage amounts to a substantial portion,” he said.

The State Labour Minister, Mr P.K. Gurudasan, inaugurated the AGM while Mr D.P. Maheshwari, President of UPASI, was the guest of honour.

More Stories on : Plantations | Taxation | Kerala

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