Amid speculations of farm loans waiver, Centre clarifies stand

Is the government going to waive off the loans of farmers? There have been speculations about the government considering waiving off farmers' loans. On Monday, the government made its stand clear regarding the situation.

In response to a question, Bhagwat Karad, Minister of State for Finance in the Lok Sabha has given a written reply, saying that no proposal to waive loans of other farmers, including those belonging to Scheduled Castes (SC) and Scheduled Tribes (ST), is under consideration. 

The minister added that the Center has not implemented any farm loan waiver scheme since 'Agriculture Debt Waiver and Debt Relief Scheme (Awards), 2008'.

"There is no proposal under consideration with the Government of India to waive off the loans of farmers, including those belonging to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in the country," the minister said. 

He also informed about the major initiatives taken by the Narendra Modi-led government and the Reserve Bank of India for the welfare of the people engaged in agriculture.

Karad further cited schemes such as interest subvention for short-term crop loans up to Rs.3 lakh, increase in the Reserve Bank's mortgage or mortgage-free agricultural loan limits from Rs.1 lakh to Rs.1.6 lakh and direct income support of Rs 6,000 per year to farmers under the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi Yojana.