Press : Shri Prakash Javadekar on " Scam in loan waiver scheme"

Statement issued by Shri Prakash Javadekar,
National Spokesperson and MP, RS

Yet another scam of UPA regime involving massive financial outlays has come to light. Nearly, 34 lakh eligible farmers stand denied their right for debt waiver and more than 24 lakh ineligible beneficiaries have benefitted through this massive scam. The CAG report is an eye opener and the BJP demands immediate CBI inquiry out unearth the real extent of the scam.

The CAG has checked only 90,000 accounts out of 3.5 crore accounts. Even with this small sampling, the CAG has found out that 13 percent eligible farmers were not considered by the lending institutions while preparing list of eligible farmers. Further, 8.5 percent of ineligible beneficiaries got undue windfall profit. There may be many who may not be even farmers. So the figure of eligible farmers not getting the waiver benefit and number of ineligible beneficiaries is likely to increase once the detailed inspection of each account is carried out. The BJP demands that all the eligible farmers should be given the loan waiver benefit taking into account the outstanding as of March 31, 2013.

The Congress has become synonymous with corruption. Whether it is CWG, 2G, Coal scam, the chopper scam and now the farm loan waiver scam- a number of undeserving people have benefited at the cost of state exchequer.

The original scheme was flawed as many small and marginal farmers who borrowed from money lender received no benefit as they were excluded from the scheme. Those small and marginal farmers after 1997 should have been given the benefit. Many of them with great difficult and hardships had repaid the loan and as such were denied any benefit.

What is shocking is that some of the Micro Finance Institutions, through not eligible got benefitted. The CAG has come across the cases of tampering, overwriting, alterations which all tantamount to a fraud and therefore a scam. The public money has gone to undeserving beneficiaries. There are other lacunae are highlighted by the CAG like Six percent of the farmers were not extended the benefits for which they were entitled. Debt waivers certificates are not issued to many farmers causing difficulties in getting fresh loans. The BJP demands that the enquiry must fix the responsibility and action must be taken against the guilty.

Despite such loan waivers, the agricultural distress has increased. Farmers continue to commit suicide. The viability of farm economy has disappeared because continuous rise in input cost like fertilizers, pesticides, seeds, water, electricity and diesel etc. The gap between the MSP and the cost of production as calculated by the CACP is getting narrowed. The terms of trade, in the UPA regime, has gone against farmers. The BJP demands acceptance of Swaminathan Commission formula of calculating remunerative prices, which is “cost of production plus 50 percent”.

(Ram Kripal Sinha)
Secretary, BJP Parliamentary Party