Agarwal, who is also the chairman of FICCI Crop Protection Committee, urged the government to take strict action against the sale of spurious pesticides.
New Delhi| Dhanuka Agritech Group Chairman RG Agarwal on Wednesday urged the government to reduce the Goods and Services Tax on pesticides like agricultural raw materials such as seeds and fertilisers, from the existing 18 per cent to five per cent. Agarwal also urged the government to bring the agro-chemical sector under the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme and facilitate things for setting up international manufacturing centres.
“Pesticides are the major agricultural raw material to reduce crop losses. It is necessary to reduce the GST on pesticides to five percent on the same lines as other agricultural raw materials like seeds and fertilisers.
He also said that there is a need to reduce the import duty on agrochemical ‘formulations’ to 5 per cent from the existing 10 per cent.
In addition, there is a need to import new pesticide technology on a priority basis to reduce crop losses due to climate change in the country. Agarwal, who is also the chairman of FICCI Crop Protection Committee, urged the government to take strict action against the sale of spurious pesticides.
Former agriculture commissioner CD Mai said there is a need to expand connectivity at the grassroots level to help farmers deal with the hardships caused by pest attacks amid rising temperatures and other climate change challenges.
Disclaimer:Prabhasakshi has not edited this news. This news has been published from PTI-language feed.