In a bid to stop auction of land belonging to small and marginal farmers, the Rajasthan government has taken steps to draft the Rajasthan Farmers Loan Relief Act in a month’s time, said Shreya Guha, principal secretary (cooperative), Rajasthan. Once the law becomes effective, a loan relief commission will also be set up. As a first step, Guha directed the registrar cooperative to form a committee immediately in this regard.
Small and marginal farmers, landless labourers and farmers of weaker sections often have to face problems due to the burden of loans.
As part of implementation of the state Budget, Guha mentioned that in 2023-24, an interest-free crop loan of Rs 22,000 crore is to be distributed to the farmers of Rajasthan. Additionally, interest-free loans worth Rs 3,000 crore will be distributed to 1.50 lakh people through cooperative banks in rural areas for non-agricultural sectors.
As part of the Budget implementation, all the 7,282 Primary Agricultural Credit Society (PACS) in Rajasthan are to be computerised and 1963 PACS have been selected as part of Phase 1.
