In re M/s. Guru Cold Storage Private Limited (AAR Gujarat)
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 foal), shelled groundnuts / groundnut seeds, and copra are not agriculture produce as defined under Notification No. 11/2017-Central Tax (Rate). ‘Cereal’ on which any processing is done as is not usually done by a cultivator or producer will fall outside the definition of agriculture produce.
Processed spices including processed turmeric and processed ginger (soonth), are not agriculture produce as defined under Notification No. 11/2017-Central Tax (Rate). However, groundnuts with shell, 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 make it marketable for primary market would fall within the definition of agriculture produce.
Whole pulse grains such as whole gram, rajma etc. and ‘cereal ‘ 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, fall under the definition of agriculture produce as defined under Notification No. 11/2017-Central Tax (Rate).
FULL TEXT OF ADVANCE 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 leaves, tendu leaves, rice, coffee and tea but does not include manufactured products such as sugar, edible oils, processed food and processed tobacco, and intra-state support services to agricultural produce by way of loading, unloading, packing, storage or warehousing of agriculture produce is chargeable at NIL rate. It is further submitted that as per their understanding of the provisions of the CGST Act and the SGST Act (Gujarat), there is no tax on agricultural produce unless the goods are branded with registered trademark. Thus, the services related to storage of the goods mentioned above, 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 it marketable for primary market shall be charged at NIL rate as the same have not been branded with a registered trademark.
2. The 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 applicant in his application are produce out of cultivation of plants but become marketable after some further processing which is generally done by the processor, not by a cultivators or producer, therefore all the above products do not cover under the definition of ‘Agricultural Produce’ as defined under the Notification No. 11/2017-Central Tax (Rate) dated 28.06.2017. It is also submitted that as all the above products are not covered under Notification No. 11/2017-Central Tax (Rate) dated 28.06.2017, the reply of point (b) of application is not relevant.
4. We have considered the submissions made by the applicant in their application for advance ruling as well as at the time of personal hearing on 30.11.2017. We have also considered the views of GST & Central Excise Commissionerate, Ahmedabad North.
5.1 The issue involved mainly pertains to Sl. No. 24 of Notification No. 11/2017-Central Tax (Rate) dated 28.06.2017 issued under the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 (herein after 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 –
