In Re : M/s. Guru Cold Storage Private Limited
GST
2018 (6) TMI 622 – AUTHORITY FOR ADVANCE RULINGS, GUJARAT – 2018 (14) G. S. T. L. 112 (A. A. R. – GST), [2018] 2 GSTL (AAR) 87 (AAR)
AUTHORITY FOR ADVANCE RULINGS, GUJARAT – AAR
Dated:- 13-12-2017
RULING NO. GUJ/GAAR/RULING/2017-18/1 (IN APPLICATION NO. Advance Ruling/SGST&CGST/2017-18/AR/7)
GST
Mr. G.C. Jain, Member And Mr. R.B. Mankodi, Member
For The Applicant : Shri Rubbal Bhandari, CA And Shri Ashish Guru, Director
RULING
The applicant, M/s. Guru Cold Storage Pvt. Ltd., has referred to notification No. 11/2017-Central Tax (Rate) dated 28.06.2017, which inter-alia provides rate of tax as NIL for 'support services to agriculture, forestry, fishing, animal husbandry', and submitted that in their opinion, 'Agricultural Produce' includes all cereals, pulses, fruits, nuts and vegetables, spices, copra, sugar cane, jaggery, raw vegetables fibers such as cotton, flax, jute, indigo, unmanufactured tobacco, betel l
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applicant has raised the following question for advance ruling :-
“Whether all cereals, pulses, spices, copra, jaggery (Gur), groundnuts (with or without shell), groundnut seeds, turmeric dried and ginger dried (soonth), cashew, almond, kismis, jardalu, anjeer (fig), date, ambli foal are covered under the definition of 'Agriculture Produce' as defined under Notification No. 11/2017-Central Tax (Rate) dated 28.06.2017.
If the answer to above point is affirmative, then whether the taxability of goods mentioned above point changes if they are received for storage either in bulk packing or small or retail packing with or without name or brand name which is not registered under the Trade Mark Act, 1999 where no further processing is done or such processing is done which does not alter its essential characteristics but makes its marketable for primary market.”
3. The Goods and Services Tax & Central Excise Commissionerate, Ahmedabad North submitted that the products mentioned by the a
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fter referred to as the 'CGST Act, 2017') and corresponding Notification issued under the Gujarat Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 (herein after referred to as the 'GGST Act, 2017') or the Integrated Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017. The relevant part of Sl. No. 24 of the said Notification is reproduced below –
Sl.
No.
Chapter, Section or Heading
Description of Service
Rate (per cent.)
Condition
(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)
(5)
24
Heading 9986
i) Support services to agriculture, forestry, fishing, animal husbandry.
Explanation. – “Support services to agriculture, forestry, fishing, animal husbandry” mean –
(i) Services relating to cultivation of plants and rearing of all life forms of animals, except the rearing of horses, for food, fibre, fuel, raw material or other similar products or agricultural produce by way of-
(a) ………;
(b) ………;
(c) ………;
(d) ………;
(e) loading, unloading, packing, storage or warehousing of agricultural produce;
(f) ….
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ich processes are usually not carried out by farmers or at farm level but are carried out by the pulse millers. Therefore, pulses (de-husked or split) are not agriculture produce. However, whole pulse grains such as whole gram, rajma etc. are covered in the definition of agricultural produce. Processing of sugarcane into jaggery changes its essential characteristics. Thus, jaggery is also not an agricultural produce. The processed dry-fruits (processed cashew nuts, almonds, raisin (kismis), apricot (jardalu), fig (anjeer), date etc.) fall outside the definition of agriculture produce given in the aforesaid Notification.
6.2 The processed spices, including processed turmeric and processed ginger fall outside the definition of agriculture produce. However, turmeric and ginger on which no further processing is done or such processing is done as is usually done by a cultivator or producer which does not alter its essential characteristics but makes it marketable for primary market would f
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it marketable for primary market, then the same would fall within the definition of agriculture produce given in the aforesaid Notification and exemption would be available to their loading, unloading, packing, storage or warehousing. However, if any processing is done on such 'cereal' as is not usually done by a cultivator or producer, then it will fall outside the definition of agriculture produce given in the aforesaid Notification.
7. We also observe that the applicability of Goods and Services Tax on warehousing of agricultural produce has been clarified vide Circular No. 16/16/2017-GST dated 15.11.2017 issued by the Government of India, Ministry of Finance, Department of Revenue, Central Board of Excise & Customs (Tax Research Unit).
8. In view of the foregoing, we rule as under –
RULING
Pulses (commonly known as 'Dal') (de-husked or split), jaggery, processed dry fruits such as processed cashew nuts, raisin (kismis), apricot (jardalu), fig (anjeer), date, tamarind (ambali
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