Harish Rao suggests 3-point solution to quicken clearance of crop loans

HYDERABAD: Finance Minister Harish Rao suggested three solutions for bankers to ensure smooth disbursement of crop loan waiver at a review meeting in the State Secretariat on Monday.

The Minister wanted bankers to identify Rythu Bandhu accounts through Aadhaar numbers to disburse the loan waiver funds, benefiting around one lakh additional recipients. He sought the collaboration of banks and the National Payment Corporation of India (NPCI) to streamline and expedite the process, ensuring funds reached approximately 50,000 farmers within three days.

He also advised banks to meticulously examine the remaining 16,000 cases at the grassroots level, with the active support of collectors and district agriculture department officials.

He encouraged the bankers to establish a dedicated grievance cell at the State level to swiftly resolve loan waiver-related issues. Contact information of an officer would be provided to facilitate communication with affected farmers. “If issues persist, a nodal officer will be designated at the district level through the agriculture department,” Harish said.

Emphasising Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao’s commitment to ensure every rupee of loan waiver reached the farmers, Harish Rao revealed that loans up to Rs 9,654 crore were already waived for 18,79,000 farmers.

“Remarkably, 17,15,000 beneficiaries have already received the loan waiver funds in their accounts, while approximately 1.6 lakh individuals are yet to receive their waivers due to technical and other issues,” he pointed out.

To support farmers further, banks should extend new loans to those who have received loan waivers, the Finance Minister said. He suggested periodic reviews by bank authorities to assess progress.

“Statistics suggest that 35 per cent of loan waiver recipients have been sanctioned new loans thus far. By month’s end, a total of 18.79 lakh farmers are expected to complete their crop loan renewals, with the Rs. 9,654 crore waived by the government now being reinvested in the form of new loans. District Collectors, MLAs, and other stakeholders will collaborate to ensure farmers are well-informed about these new lending opportunities, “he said.

Harish Rao emphasised that a comprehensive high-level review would take place at the end of September regarding loan waivers and crop loan renewals. “Following this, a video conference was held with district collectors to address loan waiver issues specific to their regions, resulting in various directives,” he added.

He reiterated the Government’s determination to swiftly resolve all loan waiver-related challenges to ensure that farmers received the support they need.