There is nothing in it, says small-time tenant farmer Pamarathi Satyanarayana, as his wife Sivanaga Rani helps him in the farm.
Neither he nor his wife appear upset though. “I knew it,” he says, blaming his misfortune for being a tenant farmer. “The `10 lakh crore agriculture credit this year will go to farmers, not to us. We have to raise loans at two per cent interest per month,” he said in angst.
The Budget day did not enthuse him. “I knew it will be a waste of time sitting before the TV,” he said, when Express spotted him at his field in a remote location at Salipeta Donka in Penamaluru near Vijayawada.
No announcement which would make tenant farmers eligible for bank loans has made him indifferent. “We make up for 75 per cent of total farmers in the country. I do not not understand how the centre is unaware of this fact. All measures will help only landlords,” he lamented.
He smiles wryly when told about the increase in allocation under the Fasal Bima Yojana. “Cyclones are frequent visitors. We suffer the loss since no input subsidy reaches us. There is no way we can insure our crop as the land does not belong to us. In my case, my landlord lives in the US. I toil and credit annuity goes to him. Any government benefit, be it input subsidy or insurance amount will only go into his account,” he rued.
He wonders why the Finance Minister has not thought on bringing farmers like him into the banking fold. “”If he does, the cost of production will come down drastically. This is the only way to make a farmer double his income in five years,” Satyanarayana said. Though banks advance loans to tenant farmers, they will have to show a certificate obtained from their landlord for proof. “But landlords are averse to giving certificates and hence we are outside the banking system,” he explains.