Jalandhar, January 3: Reiterating the firm commitment of the state government to benefit the farmers under the crop loan waiver scheme, the Deputy Commissioner Jalandhar Varinder Kumar Sharma today said that the state government would cover all the debt ridden farmers with land holdings below five acres under the scheme.
Divulging the details, the Deputy Commissioner said that the district administration has identified more than 10,000 farmers in Jalandhar for crop loan waiver of cooperative banks in first phase of the scheme. He said that these farmers were having land holdings not more than 2.5 acres and in the first phase their loans pertaining to the cooperative societies and cooperative banks would be covered. However, Sharma that in the second phase all the small and marginal farmers of the district with land holdings below five acres would covered under the scheme.
The Deputy Commissioner said that on recommendations of an expert group under renowned Agro expert Dr T Haque, the state government has formulated this scheme which would cover only institutional crop loans i. e Crop loans advanced by Commercial and Cooperative banking institutions. He said that this scheme would be applicable on small and marginal farmers with land holdings below five acres. Sharma said that the Direct Agricultural loan taken under a Kisan Credit card would also be covered under the scheme.
The Deputy Commissioner said that a crop loan and an investment loan taken by farmer would be counted as two distinct loans adding that the scheme would apply only on crop loan. Sharma said that in case of a farmer who had taken loans from two separate lending institutions, the first priority would be given to Cooperative institutions, second to public sector banks and third to commercial banks. He said that the amount for eligible debt relief would comprise of outstanding liability under crop loan (principal and interest) as on March 31, 2017 adding that interest outstanding from April 1 till date of notification would be additional.
The Deputy Commissioner clarified that in the first phase loan of cooperative banks upto Rs 2 lakhs only was being waived. He said that after that in second phase the loans extended by nationalized banks would be taken up for scrutiny and waive off by the government. Sharma said that the Government of Punjab was committed to fulfill the promises made with farmers in the manifesto.