VIJAYAWADA: In a farmer-friendly gesture, the Cabinet which met at Velagapudi on Monday decided that every moneylender should obtain licence from the government. It maintained that the government would decide at what interest rate the moneylenders should advance loans to farmers.
If this decision is implemented, it would help farmers who are under stress due to a debt trap. Till now, there is no check on moneylenders. With the move, lending money without licence will become illegal. According to a recent India Spend analysis, 92.9 percent of farmers in AP are unable to free themselves from usury owing to high-interest loans and losses.
It points out that the input costs are more than what a farmer gets finally because the MSP for a majority of crops is far less than the investment.