BENGALURU: Taking exception to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s comments on his pet farm loan waiver, CM H D Kumaraswamy on Sunday deemed them “incorrect” and “very unfortunate”. Kumaraswamy, who is on a vacation with his family, got his office to release a statement on his behalf, chiding the Centre for refusing to come to the assistance of farmers but choosing to slam the initiative undertaken by his government.
PM Modi had, during his video conference with BJP party workers in Karnataka, called the `46,000-crore waiver “a cruel joke”, and insisted that it had benefited only a few farmers.“Despite making repeated requests, the Union government has not come to the rescue of farmers and now, Hon’ble Prime Minister demeaning the State Government for political gain by making such incorrect remarks is inappropriate on his part,” a statement from the CM’s office said.
Accusing the PM of misleading people with incorrect statements, Kumaraswamy presented a status report on the loan waiver. The entire process, the statement said, was made public, and aimed at ensuring that farmers eligible for the waiver get direct benefits, without the any intervention. “So far, Rs 350 crore has been paid to about 60,000 farmers electronically into individual accounts of the farmers,” the statement said.
If the CMO’s statement is anything to go by, one lakh farmers are scheduled to get Rs 400 crore in the next week alone. Kumaraswamy’s office has suggested that by end of January, all genuine farmers would get the benefit, since payments are being made on a weekly basis, as and when information is being verified.