The Hindu Business Line : ‘Farm debt waiver scheme completed in 30 days’

Unprecedented inauguration: The Finance Minister, Mr P. Chidambaram, and the SBI Chairman, Mr O.P. Bhatt, at a function in the Capital on Tuesday. - Kamal Narang

Our Bureau

New Delhi, July 1 The Finance Minister, Mr P Chidambaram, on Tuesday said that the ambitious farm debt waiver/relief scheme has been successfully completed as on June 30, in a span of 30 days since the guidelines were issued.

“Over 4 crore farmers have benefited from the scheme that has cost upwards of 60,000 crore and could touch Rs 70,000 crore. We just took 30 days to complete the scheme”, Mr Chidambaram said after launching online 101 branches of State Bank of India (SBI) across the country.

At the function organised to celebrate the 202nd birthday of SBI, Mr Chidambaram also distributed fresh loans to some farmers whose debts were written off under the farm debt waiver and debt relief scheme which the bank has fully implemented.

The online inauguration of 101 branches in a single day was unprecedented in the country. With this, the bank’s network of branches has touched 10,486.

The Finance Minister also expressed confidence that increased flow of agriculture credit, consequent to distribution of fresh loans to farmers whose debt have been written off, would give an impetus to agricultural production and revival of agriculture sector in the economy.

‘We’ll do better’

Mr Chidambaram later hinted that the Government would be able to contain fiscal deficit below the budget estimates of 2.5 per cent of GDP for the current fiscal.

“At the end of the year, we will do better than the budget estimates,” Mr Chidambaram told reporters when asked about sharp rise in fiscal deficit in April-May as per the figures released by the Comptroller General of Accounts .

Home rate hike

Meanwhile, SBI today said it may increase home loan rates by up to 50 basis points in a fortnight.

“We raised the PLR by 50 basis points so the rise (home loan rate) will not be more than that,” SBI Chairman, Mr O. P. Bhatt told reporters here. He said that the bank would take a call on home loan rates by July 15.

Asked about whether there is decline in fresh home loan borrowing, Bhatt said, the bank’s April-May disbursal has in fact increased, compared to same period last year.