The Hindu : Kerala News : Interest concession on loans for farmers

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Oct 14, 2004

Kerala

Kerala

Interest concession on loans for farmers

By Our Special Correspondent

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, OCT. 13. The Cabinet today decided to enhance the interest concessions on loans given to farmers in Wayanad district and initiate procurement of areacanut from the market.

Briefing the media on the Cabinet decisions, the Chief Minister, Oommen Chandy, said that arecanut would be procured from farmers at prices above market price by Rs. 10 a kg. Similar procurement schemes would be devised for coffee and pepper before the season.

Mr. Chandy said that about Rs. 10 crores would be needed for procurement of areacanut. The Current market price of areacanut was about Rs. 47 a kg. The scheme would cover the whole of State.

He said that the full interest waiver granted to farmers of Wayanad district on agricultural loans would be extended from three years to five years (2001-02 to 2005-06). The concession would be available for up to Rs. 50,000 on any farm loan, irrespective of the total size of the loan. Earlier, the concession was available for loans not exceeding Rs. 50,000.

Book adjustment

He said some farmers had made book adjustment of their loans fearing revenue recovery proceedings. They would also be given benefit of the interest concession.

The Chief Minister said the scheduled banks would also be requested to extend similar concession to farmers. He would write to the Union Minister for Finance and the Reserve Bank of India in this regard. The banks now offered only one-time settlement of loans that did not benefit the farmers much.

Mixed farming

Asked about what the Government proposed to do for Kuttanad and Idukki, Mr. Chandy said the scheme for mixed farming of paddy and fish would be expanded. The farmers of Kuttanad were already being given seeds and lime for paddy cultivation. The procurement scheme for pepper and coffee would benefit farmers of Idukki.

He said that Rs. 50,000 each would be given to people of three villages in Kannur district, Pasuvackal village in Kozhikode district and certain areas of Idukki district who lost their houses in landslips. Ten cents of land would be given to those who had lost the entire land in their possession.

S. Pulikesi, IPS Officer, would be appointed as Inspector General of Police (Vigilance). Mohamed Noushad will be posted as Project Officer of the Kerala Urban Development Project and S. G. K. Kishore as Director of Sports and Youth Affairs. M. Vijayanand would be given additional charge of Secretary (Rural) in the Local Self -Government Department, now being handled by P. Kamalkutty. Mr. Kamalkutty would continue to hold the charge of Secretary (Urban) in the Department.

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