Daijiworld Media Network - Bengaluru (SP)

Bengaluru, Nov 5: Karnataka chief minister (CM), H D Kumaraswamy, has been saying that farm loans are being waived. He had promised to distribute loan clearance letters by November 1, but this has not been met. In the meanwhile, a number of banks are serving notices and arrest warrants through courts, urging the defaulting farmers to repay their loans.

The farmer community is increasingly getting agitated and losing patience. They even threatened to lay siege to Vidhana Soudha. The CM has asked farmers not to worry, while the finance department says that waiver scheme applies to only crop loans and not to others. Some officials say that only crop loans up to two lac rupees pending in scheduled and commercial banks and up to one lac rupees in cooperative banks would be waived. The officials say that no other loans would be waived.

Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha has threatened to lay siege to Vidhana Soudha on November 19 in connection with this issue. Several other organizations of agriculturists have shown inclination to join this protest. Honourary president of the Sangha, Chamarasa Patil, noted that the government had announced farm loan waiver six months back but so far nothing other than promises has come out.

Times of India said that some nationalized banks have filed suits for recovery while some private banks have even registered criminal cases to recover dues. The private banks had collected signed blank cheques towards repayment of loans, and Axis Bank has filed criminal cases for dishonour of cheques. In Belagavi district, it is said, 160 cases have been filed and arrest warrants have been served against 62 farmers. In certain cases, tractors have been seized by the banks.

Kuruburu Shanthakumar, president of Kabbu Belegarara Sangha, squarely places blame on the government for promising loan waiver and then doing nothing about it other than repeating the promises. The State Level Bankers Committee says that the banks are duty-bound to follow procedure to recover loans. Most loans raised by farmers are for acquiring farm machinery, pump sets, agricultural implements etc.

The farmer leaders say that the CM had promised to waive crop loans and other loans of farmers in two phases. Speaking at Davanagere, deputy chief minister, Dr G Parameshwar, asked farmers not to panic at the receipt of court notices. The farmers are now a worried lot, not getting clear cut information about how much, when, and what types of their loans would be waived by the government.