HYDERABAD: BRS working president KT Rama Rao, in a letter to Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi and AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge, alleged that the Congress government in Telangana failed to fulfil its promise of waiving crop loans.
“The Congress leaders, including yourself and Chief Minister Revanth Reddy, made a grand promise during the Assembly elections to implement a Rs 2 lakh loan waiver at one go on December 9, 2023. This promise is a key component of the party’s ‘Warangal Rythu Declaration’ released by you in 2022. However, the ground reality tells a different story,” Rama Rao told Rahul Gandhi in the letter.
“While the Congress has initiated the loan waiver process, it has fallen short of its commitments. Many farmers across the state have been excluded from the scheme, despite meeting all eligibility criteria. The government, which initially announced a loan waiver up to Rs 2 lakh, has significantly limited the number of beneficiaries,” KTR said.
“The data from the State Level Bankers’ Committee (SLBC) reveals the gravity of the situation. Banks disbursed Rs 49,500 crore in crop loans to farmers during the financial year 2023-24, but only Rs 17,933 crore have been waived, covering just 22.37 lakh farmers,” the MLA alleged.
Number of loan waiver beneficiaries decreased by 14.31L, claims KTR
In contrast, the BRS government had waived loans up to Rs 1 lakh, amounting to Rs 19,198 crore for 36.68 lakh farmers. Despite the Congress party’s promise to waive loans up to Rs 2 lakh, the number of beneficiaries surprisingly decreased by 14.31 lakh. In fact, the number should have increased to 47 lakh farmers, but it dropped to 22.37 lakh, Rama Rao pointed out.
“According to the State Level Bankers Committee (SLBC), as of March 31, 2024, the total crop loans stood at Rs 49,500 crore disbursed by December. Although the Congress government initially estimated a requirement of Rs 40,000 crore to fulfil its loan waiver promise, this amount was reduced to Rs 31,000 crore in a Cabinet meeting and then to Rs 26,000 crore in Budget allocations.
Ultimately, only Rs 17,933 crore was finalised in three instalments. This indicates a clear reluctance of the government to honour its commitments, leading to a growing sense of betrayal among farmers who trusted your party’s promises. Farmers are now forced to navigate a bureaucratic maze, running from banks to officials, seeking answers for their exclusion from the waiver,” Rama Rao told Rahul Gandhi.
He added that thousands of complaints have been filed, and BRS WhatsApp helpline alone received over 1 lakh complaints in less than a week. Rama Rao alleged that this grim situation highlights discrepancies and seemingly arbitrary restrictions imposed by the Congress government to reduce its financial burden at the farmers’ expense.
The farmers of Telangana feel cheated and abandoned, Rama Rao said and informed Rahul Gandhi that the BRS stands with the farmers and would continue to fight for their rights and ensure that their voices are heard.