Karnataka - Hassan   

Growers welcome new package for coffee

Staff Correspondent

Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs announces Rs. 287.10-crore scheme in New Delhi

HASSAN: The Karnataka Growers Federation, a representative body of coffee growers in the Malnad region, has welcomed the Rs. 287.10-crore package announced by the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs in New Delhi on Thursday.

The federation has told The Hindu that the latest package has come as succour to coffee growers who were in trouble because of the fall in price of coffee in the international market and the white stem borer attack on the crop in the recent years.

The federation had sought reduction in the rate of interest on the special coffee term loan from 12 per cent to six per cent, for crop loans at an interest rate of six per cent, also a directive to cooperative and financial institutions to abide by the guidelines of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) with regard to the interest rate and inclusion of non-performing assets under the package.

The Cabinet Committee had referred the relief package sought by the federation to a committee of secretaries of various departments concerned.

The committee after assessing the situation has recommended to the Cabinet Committee to announce a package for the growers to help them to tide over their problems, the federation said.

The Minister for Finance, P. Chidambaram, in a release said that of the Rs. 287.10 crores, the Government and financial institutions would share Rs. 191.40 crores and the growers are to bear the rest of the burden.

They are expected to deposit Rs. 95.70 crores by June 2005 to facilitate the Government and financial institutions to deposit their shares, he added.

The Coffee Board has agreed to waive Rs. 24 crores development loan borrowed by growers, and an interest subsidy of five per cent will be extended to small growers who have holdings below 10 acres and three per cent for big growers. The growers will be charged nine per cent interest on special coffee term loans.

Federation not satisfied

The federation, however, said that it is not "fully'' satisfied with the package as the federation expected the Government to at least deposit interest on growers loan for the fiscal 2005-06 as the crop is affected by white stem borer.

It seems the Joint Action Committee of Growers of Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka is also not completely satisfied with the package. Expressing his dissatisfaction over the package, the Convenor of the Committee, B. Jagannath, said the Government had failed in fulfilling its promise.

The Government had not considered its plea of complete waiver on special coffee term loans and it is difficult for the growers to deposit Rs. 95.70 crores as desired by the Government within the moratorium, he said.

The waiver of Rs. 24 crores loan by the Coffee Board will not help the growers in any way, as it will help only "wilful defaulters'' of a particular region.

However, the Chairman, Coffee Board, is visiting Sakleshpur shortly and the growers will brief him about the ground realities, he added.

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