Punjab’s farm loan waiver: Disquiet in Congress over party leaders being ignored in selection of beneficiaries

The state government has decided to roll out its scheme from Mansa on January 7 under which loans worth Rs 170 crore would be waived off formally. Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh would be handing over the certificate to the farmers.

Written by Kanchan Vasdev | Chandigarh | Updated: January 3, 2018 5:49 am
Farm loan waiver: Disquiet in Congress over party leaders being ignored in selection of beneficiaries The government has decided to roll out its scheme from Mansa on January 7 under which loans worth Rs 170 crore would be waived off formally. Punjab CM Amarinder Singh (File)

Punjab government’s farm loan waiver, which is to be rolled out to 40,000 farmers from five districts in Malwa on January 7, has many Congress leaders fuming as cooperative societies have been asked to identify the beneficiaries instead of the political leadership.Party leaders wanted to emulate the Shiormani Akali Dal (SAD) which during its regime would make sure that beneficiaries of any government scheme were selected by the Halqa Incharge or Akali MLA of the area.

The functionaries of the Congress government, however, want to make sure that the government’s farm loan waiver goes to the real sufferers of debt burden while rising above the party politics.

The government has decided to roll out its scheme from Mansa on January 7 under which loans worth Rs 170 crore would be waived off formally. Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh would be handing over the certificate to the farmers.

The loans from cooperative banks to these farmers up to Rs 2 lakh would be waived off. The money would be transferred to the cooperative bank accounts online early on January 7 and the CM will hand over the certificates to the beneficiaries in the afternoon. The certificates are in the process of being printed.

Sources in the government said the 40,000 farmers have been identified by 800 cooperative societies from five districts of Malwa including Mansa, Bathinda, Faridkot, Moga and Muktsar. Each cooperative society has identified 50 farmers each.

“These cooperative societies have been asked to organise the buses and bring 50 farmers in their area respectively to the venue on January 7,” said a functionary of the government.

Even this arrangement has not gone down well with the political leadership of the state. A leader said, “When Akalis would distribute any benefit, it was given to their supporters first. But our government does not take a political feedback. Now our supporters may not get the benefit in the first function.”

Another leader said he had raised objection with party seniors. “But nothing will change. They want to give an impression that they are very fair. My workers are angry.”

A functionary of the government said there were issues raised by some leaders, but the government was not discriminating against anyone on the basis of their political affiliations. “Farmers are really suffering due to debt. They belong to the state and not to a political party,” said the government functionary.

The government has chosen Mansa as the venue because farmers in cotton belt have suffered the most, he added.