Farmers with small land holdings and landless labourers in large numbers are submitting their applications to secure relief under the Karnataka Debt Relief Act, 2018, which has come into effect. The office of the Assistant Commissioner in the city is a beehive of activity. People are queuing up to submit documents.
The Act was announced by former CM H.D. Kumaraswamy as per which individuals with an annual income below ₹1.2 lakh could seek a one-time waiver in case they had taken loans from pawnbrokers and private moneylenders or other informal sources of credit.
A majority tend to be from villages 1 many of who have pledged their property or jewellery for loans from private parties. They will be exempt from the debt. The rule mandates that the borrowers should furnish proof of having mortgaged their property including jewellery to secure the loan.
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The Bill received Presidential ascent last month and will benefit those who were not helped by loan waiver schemes.