The Telangana Government on Tuesday released Rs.2,019.19 crore as the second tranche of the third instalment of the crop loan waiver scheme.
The Tuesday’s budget release order would take the total amount released towards the crop loan waiver scheme from September 2014 to Rs.12,375.18 crore benefiting about 35.3 lakh farmers, whose crop loans up to Rs.1 lakh are covered under the waiver announced by the government in June 2014.
When contacted, official sources stated that it would take another 10 days for the amount to be credited or rather adjusted by banks in the crop loan accounts of the beneficiary farmers. “What follows is that the Finance Department would release the amount to the banks concerned so that it would be adjusted against their outstanding crop loan dues till March 31, 2014.The remaining outstanding amount, within the upper limit of Rs.1 lakh, along with interest will be cleared in the next fiscal”, the sources explained.
The release of the crop loan waiver amount comes after the Cabinet decision taken on October 21 to adjust the amount within a month. The first tranche of the third instalment of crop loan waiver amount of Rs.2,019.99 crore was released on July 1 but the Opposition parties have criticised the government later for the delay in releasing the remaining loan waiver amount. In fact, they have been demanding releasing the fourth instalment of the waiver too immediately.
Official sources admitted that they were able to adjust the amount following the flexibility enabled to it with increase in its borrowing limit to 3.5 per cent of GSDP under the Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management (FRBM) Act from 3.25 per cent earlier. “Although we had problems adjusting the amount till the FRBM limit was hiked, it has been overcome once it has made available another Rs.2,500 crore practically”, the sources said.
The final crop loan waiver amount was worked out to Rs.16,160 crore after detection of irregular crop loan accounts, which has brought down the number of genuine farmers eligible for the scheme to 35.3 lakh from over 36 lakh taken into account initially. Officials stated that about Rs.10,100 crore had reached the beneficiary farmers’ accounts till the release of another tranche on Tuesday, out of Rs.10,356 crore released.
