Kumaraswamy seeks 50% Central assistance for farm loan waiver

Concerns have been expressed from many quarters over financial implications of the proposed scheme

Awaiting succour: A file photo of a farmer preparing the land for cultivation in Vijayapura district. Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy on Sunday said the distress of farmers is more severe owing to recurring drought.

Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy, who is expected to make an announcement on farm loan-waiver scheme in the budget to be presented in July, on Sunday sought 50% Central assistance for the initiative.

The request came during his speech at the fourth Governing Council meeting of the NITI Aayog in Delhi. “In Karnataka, about 85 lakh farmers have outstanding debts on account of agricultural loans from banks. Owing to recurring drought, the distress of farmers is even more severe. I request the government of India to provide 50% support to our loan-waiver scheme,” he said, and added that his government was ready to address this problem and required support from the Centre.

“The new government has to fulfil several aspirations of the people of Karnataka. While we represent various political ideologies, when it comes to development, we should work together,” he suggested.

His appeal to the Centre assumes importance in the light of concerns expressed from several quarters over the financial implications of the farm loan waiver. If implemented in full, it is estimated that the State requires ₹53,000 crore to waive all loans in the cooperative sector and nationalised banks. The Congress, the coalition partner, is also wary of its implications, while officials, it is learnt, have informed the Chief Minister about tough times in implementing it. Farm loan waiver was one of the important promises the Janata Dal (Secular) made in its election manifesto.

Allocation for the State under the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) at ₹1,375 crore had been less, Mr. Kumaraswamy said, and added that State had been forced to spend huge amount of money with disasters recurring every year. “Our allocation for 2015–20 under the SDRF is less when compared with that to other States. The State’s unmet needs are huge and it has not been addressed either in the Finance Commission award or under the NDRF.”

In his address at the Governing Council meeting, Mr. Kumaraswamy also sought ₹100 crore each a year for Yadgir and Raichur to undertake comprehensive development of these districts for the next five years. Welcoming the Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Swasthya Suraksha Mission, Mr. Kumaraswamy said Karnataka proposed to implement the PMRSSM and the State’s Yashasvini scheme as one integrated scheme with co-branding by both the State and Central governments.

Touching upon climate change and its impact on agriculture, he urged the Union government to harness national and international expertise to develop comprehensive framework, strategies, and practises to usher in climate-resilient agricultural revolution in the country. Further, he also suggested that the decade be called “water decade” dedicated to extensive and intensive water conservation efforts in the light of water becoming a scarce resource.