Agricultural loans worth Rs 590 bn went to 615 accounts in 2016: RTI report

Data from the RBI reveals that massive amounts have been given to people in the name of agricultural loans even during the UPA govt

Government banks handed out Rs 585.61 billion to 615 accounts in agricultural loans in the year 2016. On average, each account has been given over Rs 950 million in agricultural loans.

This information was revealed by the Reserve Bank of India in response to a Right to Information (RTI) application filed by The Wire.

Agricultural loans incur lower interest rates as compared to other common loans, and they are also given under fewer preconditions than the average loan. These changes were made to make it easier to give loans to small and marginalised farmers. At the moment, farmers are given agricultural loans