Chandigarh, March 18 (IANS) Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini has sought exemption of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) on 10 agricultural implements used in crop residue management.
In a missive to Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, he highlighted that the farmers of Haryana play a crucial role in the nation’s food reserves, with the state being a leader in the agricultural sector.
“In recent years, stubble burning has become a major issue, adversely impacting the health of the people. Given the seriousness of the issue, it is being closely monitored by the Supreme Court and the Air Quality Commission,” the Chief Minister said, highlighting that the state’s farmers are adopting advanced technologies and utilising the latest agricultural implements for crop residue management.
Over the past few years, both the Centre and the state government have been providing subsidies on machinery for crop residue management.
“In 2024, there was a 39 per cent reduction in stubble burning incidents compared to 2023,” Saini noted.
To further address this issue, he said, the state government has developed an action plan for 2025, which includes a provision for a subsidy of Rs 200 crore for the purchase of crop residue management machines. The total cost of these machines is expected to be around Rs 500 crore, with an additional burden of about Rs 60 crore on farmers due to GST (12 per cent).
The Chief Minister has requested the Ministry of Finance and Corporate Affairs to grant GST exemption on rotavators, disc harrows, cultivators, zero drills, super seeders, straw balers, hay rakes, slashers, reaper binders, and tractor-mounted spray pumps. He emphasized that if the Central government grants this exemption, it will encourage farmers to adopt these technologies more widely, helping to prevent air pollution caused by crop residue burning.
–IANS
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