Fulfilling the ruling Telugu Desam’s major poll promise, the Andhra Pradesh Cabinet on Monday decided to waive loans of farmers, DWCRA women self-help groups and weavers to the tune of Rs. 43,000 crore, even as the State government awaited response from the Reserve Bank of India on rescheduling loans for seven years instead of three years.
Announcing the decision at post-Cabinet press briefing, Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu said that in spite of the difficult financial situation with the State facing a budget deficit of Rs.16,000 crore, the government decided to come to the rescue of farmers in a bid to revive crisis-hit agriculture and create confidence in farmers.
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Earlier, the committee headed by former NABARD Chairman P. Kotaiah to work out the modalities on the loan waiver scheme submitted its report to Mr. Naidu recommending a loan ceiling of Rs.1 lakh per family of a farmer, which would cover 87 per cent of farmers. However, the Cabinet decided to enhance the ceiling amount to Rs.1.5 lakh thereby benefiting about 97 per cent of he farmers and also extending the concession to the remaining farmers having loans of more than Rs.1.5 lakh. The Chief Minister said that loan amount of Rs.1.5 lakh, including gold loan for agricultural purposes, would be waived. But only one loan would be waived per family in case there were two or three loans.