The Hindu : Opinion / Letters to the Editor : Farm loan waiver

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Friday, Mar 07, 2008
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Farm loan waiver

This refers to the article “Farm loan waiver: a closer look and critique” (March 6). The proposed massive farm loan waiver to the tune of Rs.60,000 crore can only treat the symptom, not the cause, of rural agrarian crisis. It is a populist scheme opportunistically announced by the UPA government with elections in mind. Why would a government, which hardly bothered about farmers all these years, suddenly wake up to their plight?

Instead of pumping in massive amount of money to waive loans, the government can invest the hard-earned money of taxpayers in developing agriculture and creating infrastructure in rural areas.

K. Rajagopal,

Visakhapatnam

* * *

The article rightly concludes that the attitude of the powers that be does not augur well for the future of rural India. Even if some farmers benefit from the waiver scheme, its overall impact would be disastrous. I am sure there exists a sizeable section of farmers which must have been returning its loans in regular instalments. This class of farmers must surely be cursing itself. The next time these farmers take a loan, they will wait for a waiver.

Balvinder Singh,

Chandigarh

* * *

It is not fair to pit honest taxpayers and farmers against one another. The farmer too is an integral part of society and has a right to start his financials on a clean slate. It should, however, be borne in mind that indebtedness is not the root cause of farmers’ suicides. It is the collective effect of spiralling costs, infrastructural bottlenecks and institutional vacuum that leads to farmers taking their lives. Apart from waiving loans, more needs to be done for farmers’ health insurance, rural infrastructure development and better implementation of relief packages. They should also be encouraged to inculcate a positive repayment culture.

Thamim Muhamed Ashraf,

New Delhi

* * *

The massive loan waiver is highly commendable. But will it benefit those farmers of the northeast who practise the traditional ‘jhum’ (shifting) cultivation? For them, there has never been any support from financial institutions, private and public.

For all their needs, they depend on moneylenders who charge exorbitant rates of interest. The productivity of jhum lands is much below the level of satisfaction when compared to wetlands. Is the Centre aware of the plight of these tribal farmers? Can we look forward to any lasting solution for these cultivators who are presently starving due to ‘mautaam’ (famine caused by bamboo flowering)?

S. Thangboi Zou,

Shillong

* * *

The cartoon (March 4) was realistic. While the “prescription” is unlikely to cure the patient, it will make the doctor also sick.

T.S. Gopalakrishnan,

Chennai

* * *

Why is there such a hue and cry about the Rs.60,000-crore farm loan waiver? The critics do not bother about the huge volume of unpaid loans pending from big industrialists. Banks are writing off loans as non-performing assets. The Prime Minister’s statement that compensation to banks is being worked out is welcome. It is clear that banks will not incur losses because of the loan waiver.

P.P. Mohanan,

Kochi

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