MP govt's one per cent loan scheme a farce: Congress

Bhopal, May 1: Terming the BJP government's much-touted one per cent interest loan scheme to farmers as a farce, Madhya Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC) today said ryots were being cheated with hidden charges and conditions attached to the scheme.

"The BJP government's one per cent loan to the farmers from April 1, is a farce. The loan has many hidden charges, including one per cent processing fees and same per cent panchayat fee," MPCC spokesman Bhupendra Gupta told PTI.

"The ruling BJP in Madhya Pradesh is cheating the farmers with a false claim of one per cent loan," he said.

The Congress leader said that if the farmers fail to pay the short-term loan instalment under one per cent interest loan, they will be charged 12 per cent interest besides three per cent fine.

Gupta said the loan recovery from the farmers was just 10 per cent in the state and in the given circumstances the ryots will have to pay huge interests.

He said that the farmers' financial condition was grim in the state following damage caused to their crops due to cold wave condition during last winter and it was tough for them to pay the loan instalments regularly.

Gupta said the state government has provided only Rs 100 crore against Rs 500 crore as farmers'' loan subsidiary to co-operative societies across the state since 2006.

MPCC spokesman said that the societies get Rs 5 per cent subsidiary in loan spelled to farmers.

When the societies get the subsidiary, it reimburses the same to the farmers who had paid back their loan amount along with the interest, he said.

PTI