While tenant farmers in the former undivided Adilabad district appear to be cut off with the ruling Telangana Rashtra Samiti for being denied benefit under Rythu Bandhu Scheme (RBS) and also denied crop loss compensation, they see a ray of hope in Congress party which has promised in its manifesto to implement the RBS for them too, if voted to power. The tenant farmers, however, are seeking more clarity from the opposition party with respect to their identification which will enable them to receive the benefits of the investment support of ₹ 4,000 per acre for each of the two crop seasons or for that matter receive compensation for crops lost in natural calamities.
The government had implemented the RBS in May, but the benefit was restricted to land owners and not the actual tillers who, in almost all instances, are poor farmers. The government had not taken any steps to identify tenant farmers as no owner would reveal facts about leasing out his lands.
Gopathi Venkatesham, a tenant paddy farmer from Malki Venkatapur in Dandepally mandal of Mancherial district, wants to know the ‘formula’ for identifying him as one who cultivates on lands taken on lease. “All tenancies are oral agreements and all land owners will conceal the facts related with leases,” he asserted as he recalled his experience of the season.
“Leave alone RBS investment support, I am not being given compensation for crop loss,” he added. Venkatesham cultivates paddy in 10 acres of land taken on lease and about 20 per cent of the crop suffered damage during the recent floods in the local stream which resulted in sand casting. “I have been told clearly that I will not get any compensation for the crop lost in the two acres of land which I have taken on lease. That will go to the pattedar,” lamented Vasant Nagapure of Tonkini village in Sirpur (T) mandal of Kumram Bheem Asifabad district whose cotton crop was damaged during the recent floods in Penganga river.
“The issue has been debated thoroughly by the Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee before making it part of our manifesto for the coming election. We will certainly come up with something more concrete so far as identifying tenant farmers is concerned.
Political parties can take a cue from the experiment in identification of tenant farmers that has been launched in Adilabad district recently, though only for the purpose of making them eligible for crop loans from banks. Direct identification of farmers and forming of joint liability groups (JLG) consisting of four or five of them has been done.
“As many as 5,320 tenant farmers have been given loan eligibility cards (LEC) under the JLG scheme. The Indervelli branch of Telangana Grameena Bank has already issued loans to two JLGs,” Adilabad Lead District Manager J.V.S.R.K. Prasad disclosed to The Hindu .
The State Level Bankers Committee has also been approached in the matter. Its consent for apportioning a target of sanctioning loans to 25 JLGs through each bank operating in rural areas is awaited.
