The Mamata Banerjee government on Friday announced continuation of two exemptions that would benefit the tea industry, especially small growers, for another financial year.

Chandrima Bhattacharya, the minister of state for finance, in her budget proposals announced that the tea industry would not have to pay rural employment and education cesses in the next financial year. She also said the agricultural income tax was waived for the industry for the period.

“In order to provide relief to the tea industry, tea estates and lakhs of tea workers dependent upon the tea industry for their livelihood, I propose to exempt payment of rural employment cess and education cess for the next financial year. Also, in order to give relief to tea gardens, especially the small gardens, I propose to waive the agricultural income tax for the next financial year, that is, 2022-23,” Bhattacharya said in her speech.

For the past few years, the state government has been waiving those charges for the industry.

The rural employment and education cess altogether means an expenditure of 12 paisa per every kilo of green tea leaves.

The agricultural income tax, on the other hand, is calculated on the profit made by selling green tea leaves and is at least 30 per cent of the profit.

In the tea industry, 60 percent of the profit earned by any estate is considered as agricultural income and agricultural income tax is calculated on it. The remaining 40 per cent profit earned by a tea company or tea garden owner is considered for computation of income tax.

However, for small tea growers, the entire earning is considered as agricultural income and thus, the announcement will largely benefit them.

For the north Bengal development department, the total allocation for the next fiscal has increased to 797.43 crore from 776.51 crores, which was allotted in 2021-22.

Similarly, in tourism, the allocation for 2022-23 is 467.95 crores, marginally higher than 457.38 crores (of 2021-22) while for tribal development, 1,089.78 crores has been allocated for next year, a rise of around 21 crores as compared to the allocation of 2021-22 when it was 1,068.38 crores.

“The government wants the ongoing projects to be finished first. That is why, though allocations were made, no major new project has been announced for north Bengal and the state as a whole,” said a state government official.