In a major relief to the farmers during the COVID-19 pandemic, Rajasthan has extended the last date for repayment of crop loans for the rabi season in 2020-21 from June 30 to August 31.
The State government has also decided to speed up disbursement of short-term loans for the kharif crop cycle.
Cooperative Minister Udai Lal Anjana said here on Tuesday that the decision would benefit lakhs of farmers affected by the pandemic as they would continue to get crop loans on zero interest rate. “The Cooperative Department has set the target for disbursing ₹16,000 crore in loans this year and has already released ₹2,550 crore in credit,” he said.
As many as 9.71 lakh farmers were connected with the agricultural credit facility during 2019-20 and 3.91 farmers in 2020-21. Mr. Anjana said the condition for loan repayment within a maximum of one year had been dispensed with.
The State government would sanction more projects for food processing, cold storage and warehouses for the benefit of agriculturists this year and generate awareness among them on their benefits.
The Cooperative Department would also shortly complete the process for recruitment to its vacant posts.
