PUNE: The recent loan waiver announced by the state government for farmers and the implementation of the Sixth Pay Commission recommendations will put a burden on the state treasury to the tune of Rs 16,000 crore.
As many as 40 lakh farmers in the state will benefit from the loan waiver scheme worth Rs 6,208 crore as announced by the state government during the recently concluded winter session of the state assembly in Nagpur.
This was stated by state co-operation minister Harshvardhan Patil, while addressing a news conference here on Friday.
“Irrespective of their financial status and land holdings, farmers will get loan waivers for maximum Rs 20,000,” Patil said.
Asked about how the government will raise resources for the loan waiver, Patil said, “This package will surely put additional burden on the treasury, since we have also decided to implement recommendations of the Sixth Pay Commission which will entail an expenditure of Rs 10,000 crore and after adding the loan waiver amount the onus on us will be to raise around Rs 16,000 crore.”
Chief minister Ashok Chavan will meet the Union finance minister and prime minister Manmohan Singh on January 6, and a detailed report on the package will be submitted to the Union government, he said.
Terming it as the biggest-ever package announced by the state government, Patil said, “There are 1.21 crore farmers in Maharashtra. Of this, 38 lakh have benefited from the Union government’s loan waiver, while 40 lakh have been covered under the state government’s waiver.” The remaining 21 lakh farmers have not taken any loan as per information available with the state government, Patil said. The state’s loan waiver covers crop loans, loans taken for irrigation, poultry and fishery, he added.
Patil said the state government will also implement the rule laid down by the Reserve Bank of India that stated that no bank should charge interest amount which was higher than the principal amount of a loan. This will bring more relief to the farmers, he said.
The state government’s loan waiver is applicable to the principal amount of loan taken by the farmer. Earlier, financial aid given by the government used to be spent on payment of interests, while the liability of the principal amount remained. This package will waive the principal amount first, so that farmers will have to repay only the interest, Patil said. He added that since the principal amount will be repaid by the state government, the farmer’s loan account will be clear and he could apply for fresh loans.
While the Union government’s debt waiver and debt relief scheme was applicable for loans which were outstanding during the period April 1, 1997, to March 31, 2007, the state government’s scheme covered outstanding loans taken before April 1, 1997.
According to the government, the package will ensure a complete loan waiver for 23.39 lakh farmers who owe Rs 20,000 or less to banks. It will cost the government Rs 2,860 crore. The scheme will be fully implemented by the end of March. The package will also benefit 16.76 lakh farmers who have taken loan of higher amounts and the government will waive Rs 3,327 crore owed by them if they go in for a one-time settlement by end of June.
Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com
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