List Of 123 Backward Districts Notified

Jayanthi Iyengar  |  BSCAL December 1, 1997 Last Updated at 00:00 IST
http://www.business-standard.com/article/specials/list-of-123-backward-districts-notified-197120101097_1.html

 

 

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The revenue department has notified a list of 123 industrially backward districts countrywide. Industries set up in these districts will be eligible for tax waivers under Section 80-1A and 11 EA of the Income Tax Act.

The backward districts have been divided into two category A and category B for purposes of claiming concessions. Some of the notified districts include Gonda, Sultanpur and Farukhabad in Uttar Pradesh, Malda and Purlia in West Bengal, Gadchiroli in Maharashtra, Tehri Garhwal in Uttar Pradesh, Wayanad and Idukki in Kerala, and Banaskantha and Sabarkantha in Gujarat.

Tamil Nadu is the only state from where no district figures on the list. In the case of the north-eastern states, industrial units set up in all parts of these state are eligible for tax concessions, including a five-year tax holiday. The classificaitions of backward districts was promised by the Rao government.

The notified list is based on the findings of a study group which was set up by the central government to identify backaward districts for tax purposes. The group submitted its report in October 1994. The central government subsequently constituted another study group to review the list.

The classification has been done by first amending Section 80 1A of the Income Tax Act through a presidential ordinance which recognises the 123 districts as backward. Section 11 EA has been amended with effect from October 1, 1994 to permit the classified districts to draw income tax benefits with retrospective effect.

The identification of backward districts has been considered essential to avert lopsided development and dispersal of industrial units. After liberalisation, development has become even more lopsided with aggressive states like Maharashtra and Gujarat attracting most of the fresh investments. Even within the states, some districts have been more prosperous than others, leading to strife within the state. A standing example is Uttar Pradesh, where the lop-sided development has led to demand for an independent state in Uttarakhand.