Agar Malwa: A 55-year-old farmer in Madhya Pradesh was taken aback when he got a loan waiver of just Rs 13 instead of Rs 23,815 he was eligible for under a scheme announced by the newly elected Congress government. Shivlal Kataria, a resident of Nipania Baijnath village in Agar Malwa district, has taken up the matter with the authorities and is hopeful of its resolution.
Earlier this month, the Madhya Pradesh Cabinet had approved a loan waiver scheme under which farm dues worth Rs 2 lakh would be waived for each eligible cultivator. “The list (of beneficiaries) is with the panchayat, which I saw the other day. It mentions that just Rs 13 of mine (debt), instead of Rs 23,815 loan, has been waived,” Kataria said. Being a poor farmer, he and his only son’s family eke out a living from their two-acre land by growing soyabean, he added.
Kataria said he was overwhelmed with joy when the Congress promised to write off farm loans ahead of the assembly elections. “Undoubtedly, the scheme is a boon. Other farmers of my village are reaping its benefit. I have taken up the matter with the authorities and I am hopeful to get the waiver for the loan I took some 10 months ago,” he told PTI. When his attention was drawn towards the issue, Agar Malwa Collector Ajay Gupta said he will look into the matter. “Let me check… the district has a huge number of farmers,” the collector said.
Chief Minister Kamal Nath had announced the farm loan waiver on December 18, 2018 hours after taking charge. The process of submitting applications to claim loan waiver started on January 15 and will end on February 5. The eligible cultivators will start getting written off amount in their bank accounts from February 22. Around 55 lakh farmers in MP are expected to benefit from the loan waiver which will cost the state exchequer Rs 50,000 crore.