KTR Writes To Rahul Gandhi, Kharge Over Crop Loan Waiver Failure

BRS working president K T Rama Rao today wrote a letter to the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi and AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge complaining of betrayal by the Telangana Congress government regarding the crop loan waiver.

KTR said that he was constrained to write the letter on behalf of the lakhs of farmers of Telangana who had been deeply disappointed by the Congress government's failure to fulfill its promise of a crop loan waiver.

The BRS leader said what he has been repeating for a while now - that the loan waiver was a sham since the Congress government had excluded a significant number of farmers, over 50%, from the scheme.

An excerpt from the text of the letter follows:

"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 in one go on December 9, 2023. The loan waiver promise is a key component of the Congress party's Warangal Rythu Declaration released by you in 2022. However, the reality on the ground tells a different story.

While the Congress government initiated the loan waiver process, it has fallen short of its commitments. A significant number of farmers across Telangana have been excluded from the scheme, despite meeting all the eligibility criteria. The government, which initially announced a waiver of loans up to Rs 2 lakh, has severely limited the number of beneficiaries.

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. To put this in perspective, the BRS government waived crop loans of 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 of up to Rs 2 lakh, the number of beneficiaries surprisingly decreased by 14.31 lakh. In fact, the number of beneficiaries should have increased to 47 lakh farmers, but it instead decreased to 22.37 lakh farmers.

According to the SLBC, as of March 31, 2024, the total crop loans disbursed by December stood at Rs 49,500 crore. Although the Congress government initially estimated needing Rs 40,000 crore to fulfil its loan waiver promise, the amount was reduced to Rs 31,000 crore in a cabinet meeting, and further cut to Rs 26,000 crore in budget allocations. Ultimately, only Rs 17,933 crore was finalized in three installments. This indicates a clear reluctance by the Congress government to honour its commitments, leading to a growing sense of betrayal among farmers who placed their trust in your party's promises.

Farmers are now forced to navigate a bureaucratic maze, running from banks to officials, seeking answers as to why they have been excluded from the waiver. Thousands of complaints have been filed, and our party's Whatsapp helpline received over one lakh complaints in less than a week. This grim situation highlights discrepancies and what appear to be arbitrary restrictions imposed by the Congress government to reduce its financial burden at the expense of farmers. The farmers of our State feel cheated and abandoned. The BRS stands with the farmers and will continue to fight for their rights and ensure that their voices are heard."