: Prospects have brightened for the release of second instalment of debt relief to farmers in a week’s time with the Andhra Pradesh government raising yet another tranche of Rs.1,500 crore market borrowings today.
The second instalment of Rs. 3,500 crore was due to be paid in the year 2015-16 but due to fund crunch, the government proposed to release it in the new financial year. Though well into the close of first quarter, it could not mobilise the required amount to release the second instalment of debt relief at one go.
In fact, the government raised Rs. 1,500 crore from the market with the approval of the Reserve Bank of India on May 24 and indicated that Rs.1,000 crore would be transferred to the Farmers’ Empowerment Corporation to make part payment to the farmers due under the second instalment. However, neither the farmers nor the Corporation were inclined to receive the part payments and made it known that it would be helpful if the entire second instalment was released at one go as the kharif season has commenced.
Finance Department sources said that entire Rs.3,500 crore would be released well before the June 22 date announced by the Chief Minister N.Chandrababu recently.
Of the Rs. 24,000 crore promised to be released by the government under the debt redemption scheme, the government has so far released Rs. 7,200 crore in 2014-15. The government proposed to clear the entire outstanding amount of farmers not exceeding Rs.1.5 lakh to the deserving farmers in equal instalments to the banks by 2017-18 so that farmers could raise fresh loans from banks.
Meanwhile, with the latest market borrowings of Rs.3,000 crore in the new financial year, the total outstanding open market borrowings of Andhra Pradesh touched Rs.94,000 crore. The market borrowings would be paid over a period of 10 years.
As on June 2, 2014, the bifurcated Andhra Pradesh inherited Rs. 68,263 crore from the total outstanding of Rs.1,17,000 crore of the combined State on the basis of population ratio of 58: 42. Telangana inherited Rs. 48,786 crore.
