Karnataka - Others   

`Waiving agricultural loans will set a bad precedent'

Staff Correspondent

Government urged to provide loans at lower interest rate instead

DAVANGERE: Bharatiya Raitha Okkoota leader C. Narasimhappa has suggested that the Government provide loans at lower interest without procedural wrangles, instead of waiving loans which might breed a wrong culture among farmers.

Addressing presspersons here on Wednesday, Prof. Narasimhappa said most of the farmers were not defaulter by intent.

They were unable to repay their loans owing to crop failure. He said announcements regarding loan waiver would discourage farmers from settling their debts.

The Union Government gets a revenue of Rs. 2 lakh crore from the agriculture sector, while farmers get less than Rs. 70,000 crore as loan through commercial and co-operative banks.

He said the previous Union Government had made budgetary proposals to provide over Rs. 1.3 lakh crores as loan to farmers last year, while the farmers has utilised less than Rs. 80,000 crores, he said.

He said that the Japan and Korea provided loans to farmers at zero per cent interest, and asked why could not the same be implemented in India.

Farmers in the State had taken more than Rs. 16,000 crores from commercial, co-operative banks and societies, Prof. Narasimhappa said and asked whether it was possible to waive such a big amount.

Since the loan waiver had been announced, farmers would not get loans from co-operative banks and institutions, Primary Land Development banks and other banks till June. They would not repay the loan amount even though they had the capacity to repay, he said adding that agricultural transactions would come to a standstill halting agricultural activities, he added.

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