The former state minister said several farmers were excluded from the loan waivers, despite meeting all eligibility criteria.
Published Aug 18, 2024 | 6:04 PM ⚊ Updated Aug 18, 2024 | 10:37 PM
File photo of KTR. (KTRTRS/Facebook)
BRS working president and Sircilla MLA KT Rama Rao (KTR) on Sunday, 18 August wrote to Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi and Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge alleging failure in the waiver of farmers’ crop loans of up to ₹2 lakh by the Telangana government.
He claimed that the Congress government in Telangana betrayed the farmers adding that the loan waiver promise was a key component of the Congress party’s ‘Warangal Rythu Declaration’ in 2022.
The former state minister said that a significant number of farmers across Telangana were excluded from the loan waivers, despite meeting all eligibility criteria.
“The government, which initially announced a waiver of loans up to ₹2 lakhs, has severely limited the number of beneficiaries,” he said in the letter.
KTR said the data from the State Level Bankers’ Committee (SLBC) revealed the gravity of the situation.
“Banks disbursed ₹49,500 crore in crop loans to farmers during the financial year 2023-24, but only ₹17,933 crore have been waived, covering just 22.37 lakh farmers,” he said.
KTR added the BRS government waived crop loans up to ₹1 lakh, amounting to ₹19,198 crore for 36.68 lakh farmers.
“Despite the Congress party’s promise to waive loans up to ₹2 lakhs, the number of beneficiaries surprisingly decreased by 14.31 lakh. In fact, the number of beneficiaries should have increased to 47 lakh farmers, but it instead decreased to 22.37 lakh farmers,” he said.
He said, according to SLBC, as of 31 March, 2024, the total crop loans stood at ₹49,500 crore.
“Although the Congress government initially estimated needing ₹40,000 crore to fulfil its loan waiver promise, the amount was reduced to ₹31,000 crore in a Cabinet meeting and further cut to ₹26,000 crore in budget allocations. Ultimately, only ₹17,933 crore was finalised in three instalments,” KTR said.
He added that the farmers were knocking on the doors of banks and bureaucrats to know the reasons for their exclusion.
BRS Working President @KTRBRS’s letter to the Leader of Opposition in Parliament, @RahulGandhi and President of the Congress Party, Mallikarjun @kharge regarding the crop loan waiver in Telangana and how the Congress party is betraying the farmers in the state. pic.twitter.com/eNRDlwNgUc
— BRS Party (@BRSparty) August 18, 2024
On 15 August, Chief Minister Revanth Reddy said that waiving farmers’ crop loans up to ₹2 lakh was a huge success.
“Farmers are celebrating a big festival in the state. The distressed farmers are freed from the mounting debt burden. As per the Warangal Declaration announced during the election period, the government is successfully implementing farm loans of up to ₹2 lakhs in a single go. Some political forces said the farm loan waiver is impossible,” he said.
“The government made it possible and proved to be farmer-friendly. Opposition parties are trying to find fault in the implementation of the farm loan waiver scheme. Every deserving farmer will benefit from the scheme. The state agriculture department took the responsibility of addressing the grievances that arose due to technical problems,” he added.
The chief minister further said the government deposited ₹6,098 crore directly to the farmers’ bank accounts on 18 July and relieved them from a debt burden of up to ₹1 lakh.
He added that the remaining amount — waiver of loans up to ₹2 lakh — was completed on 15 August.
(Edited by Muhammed Fazil)
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