No loan waiver for over 2.4 lakh farmers who haven't mentioned Aadhaar details
Under the farm loan waiver scheme, over 2.4 lakh farmers who haven't provided their Aadhaar details may not be eligible as the scheme mandates Aadhaar is one of the criteria for issue of the benefits.
Moneycontrol News
Over 2.4 lakh farmers who haven't provided their Aadhaar details may not be eligible for a waiver on their farm loans, as the scheme mandates Aadhaar as one of the criteria for availing benefits, reported Times of India.
According to the state information and technology (IT) department data that was compiled on September 22, over 56.59 lakh farmers have registered for the scheme across Maharashtra, out of which over 2.4 lakh applicants have not mentioned their Aadhaar details.
"Among the applicants from Mumbai, 338 have not quoted their Aadhaar card. The corresponding number across Maharashtra is 2.4 lakh," an official told the paper.
In Mumbai, as many as 25,335 cultivators living have applied for the loan waiver scheme.
"Those who have applied from Mumbai may be natives of Konkan where they own their agricultural plots. Their Aadhaar cards could have been registered on the Mumbai address," said an official.
Nevertheless, applicants who have failed to submit Aadhaar details will be given time to update their documents.
"We have received applications and the documents will undergo scrutiny. Applications that do not fit the bill will be excluded. However, we will give more time to those who have not submitted their Aadhaar details. Those who have awaiting their Aadhaar number will be considered for the loan waiver," V K Gautam, principal secretary of the IT department, told the newspaper.
However, the farmers' leaders are not happy with the Aadhaar criterion for the scheme, according to the report.
"If a poor farmer doesn't have an Aadhaar card, it is not his fault. The government should reach out to such cultivators and provide them with the card," Raghunathdada Patil of Shetkari Sanghatna told the paper.
Another farmers' leader Dhananjay Dhorde-Patil from Aurangabad expressed concerns over the mandatory Aadhaar clause. "If a farmer doesn't have an Aadhaar, there must be some technical problem. It does not mean that he intends to cheat the government," Dhorde-Patil said.
According to the report, Cooperation minister Subhash Deshmukh was unavailable for comment despite repeated attempts.
