Debt relief bill to be tabled this winter session

The Karnataka Debt Relief Bill, 2018, which seeks to clear loans the poor have borrowed from private moneylenders, is one of the seven Bills slated to be tabled in the ongoing Belagavi winter session of the legislature.

The Debt Relief Bill will be applicable to landless agricultural labourers, small farmers and economically weaker sections of society who have borrowed loans in the unregulated, unlicensed money-lending sector.

The government is also planning to table an amendment to the Karnataka Land Revenue Act to extend the deadline for regularising cultivation on government land (Bagair Hukum).

Other amendment Bills include: The Karnataka Goods and Services Tax (Amendment) Bill, 2018; the Karnataka Good Samaritan and Medical Professionals (Protection and Regulation during Emergency Situations) (Amendment) Bill, 2018; Karnataka Transparency in Public Procurement (Amendment) Bill, 2018; Karnataka SC/ST and Other Backward Classes (Reservation of Appointments) (Amendment) Bill, 2018.

Also, the government is considering bringing an amendment to the Karnataka Legislature (Prevention of Disqualification) Act to protect legislators appointed as political secretaries in the event of them holding an office of profit.