A delegation of farmers, which met Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman last week, has sought scrapping of the Goods and Services Tax on farm inputs, two people who attended the meeting said on Monday.

Sitharaman held a pre-budget consultation with the farmers and farm economists on Saturday where she sought suggestions, and took note of various issues and demands of the farming community, the people cited above said.

The finance minister sought to know farmers’ views on how the government’s policies were performing on the ground and what more could be done to improve productivity and resilience of a sector that still employs close to half the population, according to one of the participants.

During the pre-budget consultations, several farm leaders sought scrapping of the Goods and Services Tax, or GST, on agricultural inputs, such as seeds, manure and pesticides. “Most farmers feel that GST on agricultural inputs is a big burden and should be waived off. We proposed this strongly. The finance minister listened to our demands, took notes and assured that all possible steps to decrease costs of cultivation will be taken,” said Dharmendra Malik, national spokesperson of Bharatiya Kisan Union (Arajnaitik).

Source: Hindustan Times