Call to waive all farm loans

Dissatisfied with the Rs 25,000-cap on farm loan waiver, Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha (KRRS) and Hasiru Sene have urged the State government to completely waive all farm loans in the wake of the severe drought.

If the acute drought was a catastrophe for farmers, the floods in the Malnad region were nothing less than a disaster, KRRS president Kodihalli Chandrashekar told reporters  recently.

While arecanut, vanilla and ginger crops have been destroyed for one reason or the other, growers of silk have no buyers as the import duty on it has been lifted, causing losses to local farmers.

Compounding farmers’ woes was the “lethargic” attitude of the government, the KRRS leader charged. “It has simply failed to come to farmers’ rescue. There is no long-term scheme to tackle drought. As long as such an attitude prevails, farmers will continue to suffer,” he said.

“If such circumstances drive farmers to take their own lives, you term them suicides. These are actually brutal murders,” he added.