Summary:
Banks are concerned that as the political parties have not announced the cut-off date for the eligibility of loan waiver scheme, farmers might not repay their dues,” Ravi Kanneganti, convenor, Raitu Swarjya Vedika said. “We are already witnessing a steep fall in loan repayment across the state. Farmers are also confused as many of them are yet to get the full benefit of loan waiver,” said the manager of a bank on condition of anonymity.The general expectation is that whichever party comes to power will chose a recent date as the cut-off for outstanding loans to ensure a higher number of farmers do not become eligible beneficiaries. In some districts, officials have taken up this issue with banks, he added.With many leaders like Revanth Reddy directly asking farmers not to repay the loans, banks are worried about recovering their dues.During the campaign, many local level leaders asked farmers to seek loan renewals instead by paying little interest. The premium is in the range of 10- 25% and governments disburse 2-3% of it directly into the accounts.“In districts like Adilabad, when farmers are going to banks to withdraw their premium amounts some banks are asking them to pay their outstanding after which they will allow them to take the premium amount..