The danger of making political capital out of farm distress

Ruchika M Khanna in Chandigarh

There’s a Hindi saying: tete paanv paasariye, jeti lambi saur (spend as per your income). The ruling Congress or even previous regimes never thought of this. The Congress promised a farm loan waiver amounting to Rs 95,000 crore during the election campaign. Once in power, the financial reality dawned on the government. Of the promised waiver, only Rs 7,500 crore (8.1% of the loan) is now being waived! The crop loan waiver is more exclusivist than inclusive, thanks to the poor fiscal health of the state. The exclusion of farmers has become a veritable millstone around the neck of Congress MLAs, especially those representing rural assembly seats. 

This tardy and poor implementation has created ripples in the socio-politico life in Punjab. While Congress MLAs admit the relief is partial and is inadequate to score any political mileage. A weak opposition, the Aam Aadmi Party and the Akali-BJP alliance, has taunted the government over the relief. The Akali-BJP allies display their own “accomplishment” as to how the power subsidy of Rs 6,000 crore given to the farmers was the “real relief.” 

“This is the biggest fraud on the poor farmers of Punjab. Genuine farmers are being left out. Farmer indebtedness has only increased, spurring more suicides,” says Sukhbir Singh Badal, Shiromani Akali Dal chief.

Leader of the opposition Sukhpal Singh Khaira led a protest outside the state-level function at Mansa where the scheme was announced. He says the plan is a farce. “What Capt Amarinder Singh is doing amounts to less than 10% of the promised waiver. Farmers have received Rs 3 or 7 as compensation. Around 330 farmers have committed suicide since the Congress government took over,” says Khaira.

The scheme has been partially implemented, but the farm credit culture has been disrupted. Farmers had stopped paying their previous loans, and with their accounts getting into NPAs, they have now become ineligible for fresh loans. The situation is pushing them towards arhtiyas and private money lenders.

A Congress MLA from a rural constituency in south Malwa said on condition of anonymity that he had detected several cases of incongruities in his constituency. He has shared the information with officials in chief minister’s office and senior ministers. 

State party chief Sunil Jakhar says he is aware of the “teething troubles.” “In a meeting with officers and Congress MLAs, we decided to resolve the issues by seeking self declaration forms from all beneficiaries,” he said.

Some party MLAs have managed to ensure that the rollout is held back until a social audit is done. But this can complicate the problem. “The social audit violates our privacy as it brands us as debt-ridden,” said a Mansa farmer.

“The loan waiver is unsustainable. The government should empower the farmers to find employment outside agriculture in rural areas by improving the standards of education and skill development,” says RS Ghumman, eminent agriculture economist.