H D Kumaraswamy seeks 50 per cent central aid for farm loan waiver

BENGALURU: Struggling to find resources to fulfil his poll promise of farm loan waiver, Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy has urged the Union government to provide 50% financial support for the initiative.
Addressing the fourth meeting of the Governing Council of Niti Aayog in New Delhi on Sunday, which was chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Kumaraswamy devoted most part of his address to the issues related to the agrarian crisis. “In Karnataka, about 85 lakh farmers have debts on account of agricultural loans from banks. Due to recurring droughts, the distress of the farmers is even more severe. I request the Government of India to provide 50% support for our loan waiver initiative,” he said.

Facing hurdles with his own coalition partner Congress to deliver on his promise on farm loan waiver, Kumaraswamy’s move to seek the aid of Modi government could put even opposition BJP on the defensive as BJP too had assured farm loan waiver if it was voted to power.

“The new government has to fulfil several aspirations of the people, and we need the full support of the Centre for this. While we represent various political ideologies, when it comes to development, we should work together. The foremost issue that I would like to focus on is the agrarian crisis that the nation is facing today. Debt of farmers is staring at us in the face. My government is ready to address this problem and I request the Government of India to support us,” Kumaraswamy appealed.

Kumaraswamy advocated the need for liberal aid for farm sector as Modi has promised to double farmers’ income by 2022. Highlighting the vagaries of nature that has played havoc with the lives of people, especially farmers in the state, Kumaraswamy expressed displeasure at the “meagre grants from the Union government for relief and rehabilitation.”

“The state has to spend huge amounts. The expenditure in the last five years has been more than six-fold of the State Disaster Relief Fund allocated by the Centre, which is a huge financial burden. Our allocation for the period 2015-20 under SDRF is only `1,375 crore, which is much less compared to allocation to the other states,” he said and advocated the need for a comprehensive discussion on the issue.