Only 3,200 farmers get government's initial loan of Rs 10000

Mumbai: Only 3,200 farmers in Maharashtra have been able to benefit from the government’s initial loan of Rs 10,000, while the state government had expected the benefits would reach 90 lakh farmers. But the data accessed from State Lead Bank Committee (SBLC) by farmer activist Kishor Tiwari has said that the actual beneficiaries are much fewer in number.

Mr Tiwari said the banks did not disburse loans actively and also the loan criteria are tough, which affected the scheme. Mr Tiwari, chairman of Vasantrao Naik Shetkari Swavalanban Mission, which is a government body, has brought out these details in public.

According to the details, which the SBLC has in its possession, only 3,200 farmers have so far got Rs 10,000 as initial loan.

Maharashtra government had announced the scheme on June 11 to placate agitating farmers. A total of 90 lakh farmers who had failed to repay their loan since 2011-12 were entitled to get the loan. The government has also made it clear that it would guarantee the loan amount. Banks were asked to give the loans to farmers.

Farmers generally get crop loan for a season. In Maharashtra, the kharif season sees these kinds of loans being disbursed. However, as farmers had failed to repay their loans, banks were rejecting their new requests for loan. Farmer unrest over this was one of the major reasons in the hugely supported farmers’ agitation in June.

But according to Mr Tiwari, banks were not active in implementing this government scheme, as expected. “Banks didn’t even issue orders till July 15 of disbursing loans. This has hugely affected farming on the ground level. Therefore, the government must take strong action against all high level officers,” said Mr Tiwari.

District co-operative banks, which were supposed to disburse the largest share of loans in this scheme, had their own issues.

These included loans that were already pending and the banks having cash in old denominations, which are now not legal tender.

Seventeen out of 31 banks had written to the state cooperative department expressing their inability to issue loans.