Unseasonal Rains Destroys Crops, Farmers Demand Rescheduling of Agri Loans

Farmers, who have been hit hard by unexpected rains and resultant crop damage, are now requesting banks to reschedule their crop loans. This would enable them to have a longer repayment period for their previous loans. Agriculture activists also suggest that rescheduling crop loans could be a temporary solution for farmers to start preparing for the upcoming kharif crop.

Currently, the government's relief fund of Rs 10,000 per acre for the 1.5 lakh acres affected by rain and hailstorms has not yet reached the farmers.

Raju Yadav, a paddy farmer from Nizamabad, mentioned that after the government assesses and identifies the regions where the crops have suffered losses, the banks would restructure the loans. This would provide the farmers with additional time to repay their loans and enable them to obtain new loans.

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K Ravi Reddy, a farmer from Vikarabad, stated, "Farmers are calling on the government to classify villages and mandals as distressed zones, which would prompt banks to automatically reschedule loans once the designation is made."

According to Vissa Kiran, a member of Rythu Swarajya Vedika, the assessment of crops that were damaged due to rains after March 21st is still underway. He emphasized that farmers require funds to cultivate their land and pay for the labor required, therefore providing financial aid would be highly beneficial.

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In the 2018 elections, the government of BRS made a promise to waive crop loans of up to Rs 1 lakh, but they only ended up waiving loans up to Rs 37,000. This has left many farmers still waiting for their crop loans to be waived, causing them distress. Additionally, activists have pointed out that rescheduling crop payments would benefit paddy farmers who are currently facing challenges as millers are refusing to purchase wet paddy that has been soaked in recent rains.

Farmers are urging the state government to publicly disclose the names of those who receive input subsidies in their respective villages. According to Pakala Srihari Rao, president of Telangana Rythu Rakshana Vedika, officials must list the names of farmers under the disaster management rules. This would provide farmers with the opportunity to contest any erroneous estimates and ensure that their claims are fairly represented.

- TOI 

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