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Waiver will benefit only a few: BJP

NEW DELHI: Opposition and Left parties on Wednesday expressed doubts over the success of the loan waiver scheme which, they said, would benefit only a few farmers.

Initiating a discussion on the general budget in the Lok Sabha, Vijay Kumar Malhotra (BJP) said the waiver would leave 85 per cent of the small and marginal farmers outside the ambit of the scheme, particularly in the worst-affected Vidarbha region of Maharashtra, where most of the farmers owned more than hectares of land. But the ceiling for the benefit of loan waiver was two hectares.

Also, the government had not specified how it intended raising Rs. 60,000 crore to compensate banks for the waiver. The Prime Minister had said the banks would be provided liquidity in the next three or four years, but how would it happen when the life of the present government was just one more year?

Mr. Malhotra said the budgetary provisions would check growth, increase inflation and divide the nation on communal lines. The United Progressive Alliance government had come to power with loads of promises for the aam aadmi but there had been a 30-200 per cent increase in the prices of essential commodities since May 2004.

Accusing the government of having drafted a “communal budget,” he said the special measures announced for the minorities should have been extended to the economically backward classes. This remark evoked protests from the treasury bench.

If the condition of Muslims was bad, it was because of the Congress, which had been in power for most part of the post-Independence era, Mr. Malhotra said, comparing Prime Minister Manmohan Singh with Mughal emperor Aurangzeb.

Rup Chand Pal (CPI-M) said the government failed to address the fundamentals ailing the agriculture sector. Quoting a survey, he said only 22 per cent of the farmers had taken loan from public institutions while others had borrowed from private moneylenders and relatives to repay institutional loans. The farmers had taken loans not only for farming but also for weddings and medical emergencies. The government should define clearly who small and marginal farmers were. “This is such a haphazard exercise.”

Coming down on it for failing to address the crisis in economy and agriculture and to offer assurances to the unorganised sector, Mr. Rup Chand Pal said: “People are getting impatient and frustration is rampant. While there are no jobs for youth, the government is obsessed with growth rate.” This growth rate benefited only those in the “billionaire club.”

“I am cautioning the government, it is playing with fire that is being exploited by the Opposition.”

He was critical of the government also for failing to address price rise and labour class, and said the hike in petrol price had a cascading effect on the prices of essential commodities. Balasaheb Vikhey Patil (Congress) described the budget as a “national budget” meant for the people with measures for an inclusive growth. He said agriculture was given priority. The National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme, the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, the mid-day meal scheme and the National Rural Health Mission were meant for the overall betterment of the people. However, it was for the States to implement them effectively.

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