Soz to Lalu: waiver virus spreads

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NEW DELHI, MARCH 4: With the Government announcing waiver of farmer loans to the tune of Rs 60,000 crore, a loan-waiver virus is sweeping the political establishment, especially the Congress and its allies who suspect that elections are not too far away. From livestock loans to power bills, moneylender loans to small enterprise loans, waivers are being sought for all kinds of debts.

Consider these:

• Water Resources Minister & J&K Congress chief Saifuddin Soz met Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar on Monday and got him to agree to extend waivers to horticulture, animal husbandry and other sectors in J&K where not many small farmers have taken bank loans. The waivers will include funds disbursed by institutions like Irrigation and Rural Development Bank.

• Railway Minister and RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav’s first post-Budget message to his party was “ask for waiver of loans for small enterprises like rickshaw-pullers, for house construction for SC/ST, BPL families.” He told The Indian Express: “We at the Centre have done our bit, we want the state government to waive off these loans for the poorest.”

• The Left parties, happy with the farmer loan waiver, want the definition of small and marginal farmers broadened. “We want the Government to adopt a new definition. There is a different definition for marginal farmers in dryland, unirrigated and irrigated lands,” said CPM’s Brinda Karat. This will help farmers in dryland areas whose landholdings may be larger than 5 acres, she said.

• The day after the Budget, Sharad Pawar asked farmers not to repay loans taken from moneylenders who do not have the necessary licence. He urged state governments to protect farmers from such lenders. Pawar also slipped in another sop for the sugar industry, his favourite constituency. The Budget includes a provision of Rs 1045.42 crore, the cost of 100% interest subsidy for loans taken by millers. Sugar mills will be able to access interest-free loans up to the notional Central excise duty they pay on their output. The credit line is expected to help mills clear pending dues of canegrowers.

• In Congress-ruled Haryana, the government is considering a proposal to enable farmers to swap loans taken from Ahrtiyas (commission agents) with those from banks on easy terms. This is expected to benefit an additional 10 lakh farmers. This announcement has had repercussions in neighbouring Punjab where Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal is under pressure to come up with a similar measure. Badal has announced setting up of a committee to look into the implications of this loan waiver.