Push for greater financial inclusion and loan waivers.
As many as 15,018 small and marginal farmers have benefited so far from the Centre’s loan waiver scheme 2008 in Mysore and Chamarajanagar districts. The total loan waiver amounts to Rs 34.03 crore. Nanjangud taluk tops with Rs 5.13 crore (2,989 farmers), followed by Hunsur Rs 3.54 crore (1,432 farmers) and Periyapatna Rs 3.40 crore (1,266 farmers). Only 402 farmers have benefited in Yelandur taluk, the amount being Rs 1.15 crore.
While small and marginal farmers are entitled for cent per cent loan waiver, big farmers owning more than two hectares are eligible for loan relief of Rs. 25 per cent or Rs. 20,000 whichever is higher. In the two districts, 557 big farmers are eligible for a loan waiver of Rs. 1.30 crore. They have to remit 75 per cent of the loan amount borrowed, which amounts to Rs 2.66 crore.
Chamarajanagar tops among the 11 taluks with a benefit of Rs 42.50 lakh (184 farmers), followed by Periyapatna with Rs 22.30 lakh (89 farmers) and Gundlupet Rs. 15.30 lakh (69 farmers). The farmers of these two taluks have to remit Rs 87.26 lakh and Rs 51.75 lakh, respectively. Only six farmers are eligible for Rs 15.77 lakh benefit under the scheme in Yelandur taluk.
As against Rs 2.66 crore to be paid by 557 big farmers, 223 had repaid 75 per cent of the loan amount of Rs 85.18 lakh as on June 30, 2009, taking advantage of the relief of Rs 49.11 lakh. This leaves a balance of Rs Rs 1.81 crore due by 334 farmers at 75 per cent, after the loan relief of Rs 81.63 lakh.
Big farmers of Chamarajanagar exceed those in Mysore in keeping their loan amounts outstanding. While in Mysore district 117 farmers owe Rs 67.93 lakh, 217 farmers are yet to repay 75 per cent of their loan amount of Rs 52.70 lakh in Chamarajanagar. In Chamarajanagar taluk, 134 big farmers owe Rs 79.60 lakh, followed by 55 farmers in Gundlupet taluk, amounting to Rs 21.20 lakh.
Mysore and Chamarajanagar District Co-operative Central Bank general manager KThimmegowda told Business Standard, the loan waiver and relief amounts were reimbursed by the Centre. Of a total loan waiver of Rs 34.03 crore, the Centre reimbursed Rs 32.06 crore as on October 31, 2009, leaving a balance of Rs 1.96 crore. Of the eligible loan relief amount of Rs 1.30 crore, no amount had been reimbursed so far.
Bank managing director K C Yatish Kumar said the last date for big farmers who had availed loan from April 1, 1997, to March 31, 2007, and were due on December 31, 2007, and not repaid till 2008 February-end, has been extended till this December end.
If they want to avail the 25 per cent loan waiver benefit, they have to repay the 75 per cent loan amount before the year end.
Opening accounts
Commercial banks and regional rural banks have been asked to speed up efforts to ensure that the Reserve Bank of India’s target of achieving 100 per cent financial inclusion in all villages with a population of 2,000 plus in the state by March 2010.
Chairman of the State-Level Bankers’ Committee (SLBC), Karnataka, Basant Seth, said today that the banks could adopt the business correpondent model, as per guidelines of the RBI to extend the banking services in the villages. He also urged the heads of banks and RRBs in the state to complete the process of verification of data received from the government, with the existing accounts of the bank quickly at apex level, to be able to arrive at the number of families who currently do not have an account.
This was in keeping with RBI’ s decision to launch a renewed drive for opening up of no-frills accounts in respect of families who do not have a bank account, on the basis of the data relating to the public distribution system.
Seth asked banks to operationalise the present no-frills accounts by providing a small overdraft of Rs 500 to no-frill account holders. RBI had advised that the existing no-frills accounts should be operationalised by giving small overdraft, GCC, remittances, insurance facility, among others.
In order to focus on the quality of financial inclusion, at least 50 per cent of all “No frills” accounts existing as on March 31, 2009, should be made active by March 31, 2010, he said.
