Centre not willing to waive farmers’ loans from nationalised banks, says Rajasthan Minister

The State government had earlier rolled out a waiver of ₹14,000 crore for over 20.56 lakh farmers who had obtained loans from the cooperative banks.

The Centre is not willing to waive the farmers’ loans disbursed by the nationalised banks through a one-time scheme recommended by the Congress government in Rajasthan, State Planning Minister Mamta Bhupesh said here on Monday. The State government had earlier rolled out a waiver of ₹14,000 crore for over 20.56 lakh farmers who had obtained loans from the cooperative banks.

Facing charges of not carrying out full waiver after coming to power in the State, the Congress has been asking the BJP government at the Centre to take an urgent action for waiving off farmers’ loans from nationalised, commercial and land development banks coming under its purview. On the other hand, the cooperative banks function under the State government.

Ms. Bhupesh, who provided details of repeated requests made and letters sent to the Centre while replying to a question in the State Assembly, said the State government had offered to bear the farmers’ share in the waiver scheme. Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot had sent a proposal to the nationalised banks to bring a one-time loan waiver scheme for the State’s farmers on the lines of a scheme introduced by the State Bank of India (SBI).

The scheme entailed classification of agricultural loans as non-performing assets (NPA). While 90% of the loans were waived by the SBI, the farmers paid the remaining 10%. Mr. Gehlot had offered the State government’s contribution of 10% of the farmers’ share in the scheme and asked the nationalised banks to provide relief to poor farmers through a similar scheme.

The ruling party in the State had also pointed out that the BJP government, which was reluctant to provide relief to farmers, had written off industrialists’ loans worth Rs.7.95 lakh crore in its first tenure.

Farm loan waiver was one of the promises made by Congress in its manifesto for the 2018 State Assembly election and party leader Rahul Gandhi had announced that all loans of farmers would be waived within 10 days of assuming power.

Ms. Bhupesh said the only formal reply received from the Centre in response to several letters from the State government was a letter of April 11, 2022, in which it had refused to provide any financial assistance for the loan waiver. Besides, no bank management had so far agreed to the State government’s proposal, she said.