Farmer loans decline by 20% in Maharashtra

At a time when the Congress-Nationalist Congress Party combine has been boasting about the highest-ever financial aid provided to the farmers in state through loan waiver packages in 2008-09, comes the startling revelation of how financial help to farmers at the grass roots had dwindled by 20% in 2008-09 compared to 2007-08 — -- a fact the state government cleverly camouflaged by talking about the Rs60,000 crore loan waiver by the Centre, of which the state's share was only Rs10,100 crore. The state had extended Rs6,028 crore worth of loans, but they were not all disbursed.The state economy survey reveals, "In 2008-09, the loans advanced for agriculture and allied activities by the financial institutions directly related to the grassroot was R 9,625 crore, which works out 20% less compared to the previous Rs 12,113 crore (2007-08)."A senior bureaucrat in the department of agriculture admitted, "There was much hype about the loan waiver package of Centre-state which provided the financial institutions an escape route to overlook their individual roles and commitment towards the grassroot small and medium farmer."