PROJECT FILE

TOPIC: - AGRICULTURE INCOME

SUBMITTED TO: - SUBMITTED BY: -

PROF. KIRAN BALA DIPANSHU PATHAK

JAMIA MILLIA ISLAMIA

 Agricultural Income

Agriculture income is exempt under the Income Tax Act 1961. The reason for
exemption of agriculture income from Central Taxation is that the Constitution
gives exclusive power to make laws with respect to taxes on agricultural income to
the State Legislature. From the assessment year 1974-75, agricultural income is
taken into consideration to determine tax on non-agricultural income in certain
cases.

What Is Agricultural Income?

As per Income Tax Act 1961, any income, which is derived from any of
the following sources, will be treated as agricultural income –
1. Any rent or revenue derived from land which is situated in India and is used for
agricultural purposes.
2. Any income derived from such land by agricultural operations including
processing of the agricultural produce, raised or received as rent in kind so as to
render it fit for the market or sale of such produce.
3. Income attributable to a farm house subject to certain conditions
4. Income earned from saplings or seedlings grown in a nursery

Rent or Revenue derived from Land

According to section 2 (1A), if the following three conditions are satisfied, then the
income derived from land can be termed as agricultural income –
 Rent or revenue should be derived from land and it may be in cash or in kind
 The land is one which is situated in India. If the land is situated in a foreign
country, then the income derived from it will not be considered as agricultural
income.
 The land should be used for agricultural purposes.
The term ‘agricultural purposes’ has not been defined under the Income Tax Act
1961. Therefore we should have a look upon the following important points –

Basic operations: -
Prior to germination, some basic operations are essential to constitute agriculture.
The basic operations would involve expenditure on human skill and labour upon
the land itself and not merely on the growth from the land. The examples of basic
operations are – tilling of land, sowing of seeds, planting and similar kind of
operations on the land.

Subsequent operations:-
Besides the basic operations, there are some subsequent operations which are
performed after the produce sprouts from the land. The examples of subsequent
operations are weeding digging the soil around the growth, removal of undesirable
undergrowths and all operations which foster the growth and the preserve the
same, not only from insects and pests but also from degradation, tending pruning,
cutting, harvesting and rendering the produce fit for the market.
The subsequent operations are performed in conjunction with and in continuation
of the basic operations which constitute part of the integrated activity of
agriculture.

Agriculture not merely includes food & grains:-

Agriculture does not merely imply raising of food and grains for the consumption
of men and animals. It also includes all products from the performance of basic as
well as subsequent operations on land. These products may be grain or vegetable or
fruits including plantation and groves or grass or pasture for consumption of beasts
or articles of luxury such as betel, coffee, tea, spices, tobacco etc. or commercial
crops like cotton, flax, jute, hemp etc. All these products are raised from the land
and the term agriculture can not be confined merely to the production of food and
grains products for human beings but must be understood as comprising all the
products of the land which have some utility either for consumption or for trade.

Some connection with land not sufficient:-

The mere fact that an activity has some connection with the land or in some way
dependant on land is not sufficient to bring it within the scope of the term
agriculture. For example, breeding and rearing of livestock, cheese and butter
making and poultry farming would not come under the agricultural purposes.

Income from nursery operations:-

There was a judicial controversy whether income from nursery operations would
qualify as agriculture income within the definition given under section 2(1A). With
a view to give finality to the issue, section 2(1A) has been amended with affect
from the assessment year 2009-10 so as to provide that any income derived from
saplings or seedlings grown in a nursery shall be deemed to be agriculture income.
Accordingly, irrespective of the basic operations have been carried out on land,
such income will be treated as agriculture income and thus qualify for the
exemption under section 10(1).
 Income derived from agricultural land by agricultural operations

Section 2(1A) gives the following three instances of agriculture income –

 Any income derived by agriculture from land situated in India and used for
agricultural purposes.
 Any income derived by a cultivator or receiver of rent in kind of any process
employed to render the produce raised or received by him to make it fit to be taken
to market.
 Any income derived by such land by the sale by a cultivator or receiver of rent
in kind of the produce raised or received by him in respect of which no process has
been performed other than a process of the nature.
These incomes are agriculture income if such incomes are derived from land which
is situated in India and is used for agricultural purposes.
Any surplus arising on sale or transfer of agricultural land is not treated as rent or
revenue derived from the land.

Income derived from Marketing Process

Sometimes it becomes difficult to find ready market of the crop as harvested. In

order to make the produce a commodity which is saleable, it becomes necessary to
perform some kind of process on the produce. The income arising by way of
enhancement of value of such produce, by performing such process to make the
raw produce fit for market, is also agriculture income. However, the following
conditions must be satisfied –
 The process must be one which is usually employed by a cultivator or receiver
of rent in kind.
 The process must be applied to render the produce fit to be taken to market.
For example, tobacco leaves are ordinarily dried to make them suitable for sale.
Therefore, the income from the ordinary process employed to dry the tobacco
leaves to make them fit to be taken to market, is agriculture income. The ordinary
process employed to render the produce fit to be taken to market includes
thrashing, winnowing, drying, crushing, boiling etc.
Moreover, if marketing process is performed on a produce which can be sold in its
raw form without requiring any process to make it fit for marketing, then the
income derived from it is partly agricultural and partly non agriculture. For
example, if sugarcane is generally sold in a given area without being subject to any
process, the process of converting sugarcane into sugar would not be agriculture
process and income attributable to the process of converting sugarcane into sugar
would not be agriculture income.
Section 2(1A)(b) does not contemplate sale of commodity different from what is
cultivated and processed and where the assess was growing mulberry leaves,
feeding them to silkworms and obtaining silk cocoons, income from sale of silk
cocoons would not be agriculture income.

Income from Farm Building

Income from a house property which satisfies the following cumulative conditions,
would be treated as agriculture income and would be exempt from tax by virtue of
section 10(1) –
 The building should be occupied by the cultivator or receiver of rent in kind
who can be a landlord or a tenant.
 It should be on or in the immediate locality of land situated in India and used
for agricultural purposes.
 The cultivator or receiver in kind should by reason of his connection with the
agriculture land requires the building as a dwelling house or as a store house or
other out building
 The land is assessed to land revenue or local rate or the land is situated outside
the urban area.
Here urban area means any area which is comprised within the control of any
municipality or cantonment board having a population of not less than 10000
persons upto a maximum of 8 kilometers or within notified distance from the limits
of any such municipality or cantonment board.
If all these above conditions are satisfied, the income from a farm building is
exempt from tax.
Use of building for any other purposes other than agriculture:-
Income would be exempt from tax if land or building is used for agriculture
purposes. If the land or building is used for any other purpose then the exemption
is not available.
For example, if a farmer gives his building on rent for residential purposes then
such income would be chargeable to tax.

Cases when Income held to be Agriculture Income

In the following cases, income is held as agriculture income –

1. If denuded parts of the forest are replanted and subsequent operations in forestry
are carried out, the income arising from the sale of replanted trees.
2. Profit on sale of standing crop or the produce after harvest by a cultivating
owner or tenant of land.
3. Rent for agriculture land received from sub tenants by mortgagee in possession.
4. Compensation received from an insurance company for damage caused by hail
storm to the green leaf forming part of assessee’s tea garden.
5. Income from growing flowers and creepers.
6. Salary received by a partner for rendering services to a firm which is engaged in
agricultural operations, is agriculture income.
7. Interest on capital received by a partner from the firm engaged in agricultural
operations.
8. If nursery is maintained by carrying out basic as well as subsequent operations
then the income from such nursery would be agriculture income.
 Cases when Income held to be Non-Agriculture Income

In the following cases, income is held as non agriculture income –

1. Annual annuity received by a person in consideration of transfer of agricultural
land.
2. Interest on arrears of rent in respect of agricultural land as it is neither rent nor
revenue derived from land.
3. Interest accrued on promissory notes obtained by a Zamindar from defaulting
tenants.
4. Income from sale of wild grass and reeds of spontaneous growth.
5. Remuneration received by a managing agent at a fixed percentage of net profit
from a company having agriculture income.
6. Interest received by a money lender in the form of agriculture produce.
7. Income from sale of agricultural produce received by way of price for water
supplied to land.
8. Commission received by the landlord for selling agriculture produce of his
tenant.
9. Royalty income of mines
10. Income from poultry farming
11. Receipts from TV serial shooting in farm house
12. Maintenance allowance charged on agriculture land
 Treatment of Partly Agriculture Income

For decomposing a composite business income, which is partly agricultural and

partly non agricultural, the following rules are applicable –

Income Non-Agricultural Agricultural

Income Income
Growing and Manufacturing Tea in India 40% 60%

Rubber Plants grown by the seller in India 35% 65%

Sale of coffee grown & cured by seller 25% 75%

(normal)
Sale of coffee grown, cured, roasted and 40% 60%
grounded by the seller in India

Computation of Agriculture Income

For computation of agriculture income, the agriculture income is aggregated with

non agriculture income if following three conditions are satisfied–
 Assessee is an individual, HUF, AOP/BOI etc.
 Assessee has non agriculture income which exceeds the minimum taxable limit
 Agricultural income exceeds Rs. 5000
The aggregation of agriculture income with non agriculture income and
computation of income tax for the Assessment year 2011-12 shall be done in the
following manner –
Step 1 : Net agriculture income is to be computed if it would be chargeable to
income tax. In case of an assessee engaged in business of growing and
manufacturing tea, 60% of income computed is agriculture income.
Step 2 : Agricultural and non agricultural income of the assessee will be
aggregated and income tax is calculated on the aggregate income.
Step 3 : Then the net agricultural income is increased by the first slab of income
which tax is charged at nil rate i.e. Rs. 190000 in case of resident woman below 60
years, Rs. 250000 in case of resident senior citizen(between 60-80 years), Rs.
500000 in case of super senior resident individual(80 years or more), Rs. 180000 in
case of an other individual or every HUF.
Step 4 : The amount of income tax determined at step 2 will be reduced by the
amount of income tax determined under step 3.
Step 5 : Find out the balance. Add education cess and secondary & higher
secondary education cess.
Step 6 : The amount so arrived at is the income tax payable by the assessee.
 Practical Question

For the assessment year 2011-12, net agricultural income of an assessee is Rs.
86000 and non agricultural income is Rs. 1285000. the taxpayer contributes Rs.
40000 towards PPF. Find out the tax if the taxpayer is an individual (22 years).

Solution:-

Particulars Amount (Rs.)

Income tax on Rs. 1331000 (i.e. agricultural income Rs. 86000 251300
+ non agriculture income Rs. 1245000)
Less:- Income tax on agriculture income ( Rs. 86000 + 8600
exempted slab of income Rs. 180000)
242700
Add:- Education cess @ 2% 4854
Secondary & Higher secondary education cess @ 1% 2427
Tax Payable 249981
 REFERENCES

 INCOME TAX - DR. V. K. SINGHANIA

DR. MONIKA SINGHANIA

 INCOME TAX-LAW & ACCOUNTS - DR. R. K. JAIN