Opinion is divided among agriculturists and experts whether all categories of farmers require farm a loan waiver.
This assumes relevance in the light of the Madras High Court’s recent direction to the State government to extend waiver of cooperative loans to all farmers, irrespective of the size of landholding.
Last year, the government waived loans of about 16. 9 lakh small and marginal farmers to the tune of ₹ 5,780 crore. If it chooses to extend the scheme to other farmers, it would cost ₹ 1,980.33 crore more and benefit around 3 lakh farmers, according to the Court’s order.
P.Ayyakannu, State president of the National South Indian River Interlinking Agriculturist Association, and who had moved the High Court against the government scheme of providing the waiver to small and marginal farmers, emphasises that drought and floods affect farmers, big or small, equally. So, there is no justification for making the distinction between the two. The crux of the problem is the lack of remunerative returns.
“If the Central and State governments come forward to implement the key recommendation of the M S Swaminathan Commission that the minimum support price be set at the cost of cultivation plus 50% of the cost, we do not require any subsidy or debt waiver.”
Risky venture
Describing agriculture as the “risky venture,” S. Ranganathan, general secretary of the Cauvery Delta Farmers Welfare Association, points out that government assistance should be given to all those whose primary source of income is agriculture, regardless of the size of landholding.
But, Tamil Nadu Vivasayigal Sangam president K. Balakrishnan wonders how big farmers can be equated with small and marginal farmers. The underlying principle behind welfare schemes of the government is to ameliorate the conditions of downtrodden. “If the distinction between small and marginal farmers and big farmers is questioned, one can also question the rationale behind the classification of below poverty line (BPL). One can also challenge the economic criterion fixed for students’ scholarship schemes,” Mr Balakrishnan, former legislator from Chidambaram, says. The basis of the classification can be amended to cover more deserving farmers but the classification has to be done, he adds.
R. Kannan, former civil servant and author of many publications on agriculture and cooperative sector, says there is nothing new about the categorisation of farmers and this has been in vogue for over 50 years. Invariably, when any scheme on loan waiver is framed, farmers who have repaid their dues are left out and defaulters get rewarded. This would only encourage indiscipline among borrowers (farmers).
