Banking on the good monsoon that the state had received this year, Chhattisgarh government has set a target to produce 7.3 million tones of food grains in the kharif 2012-13
At a time when banks are struggling to find buyers for the loans, farmers in Chhattisgarh have defiant the practice reportedly going on across the country in the banking sector.
The farmers in the state that is known for heavy paddy production have showed keen interest to avail the farm loan granted by the government. As against the target fixed for the kharif season 2012-13, the authorities have achieved about 97 per cent of the loan disbursement to the farmers.
According to officials in the cooperative department, farmers have so far taken loan to the tune of Rs 1651.23 crore that is 97.13 per cent of the target fixed by the state government for the current kharif season. The officials in the cooperative banks, which are authorized for disbursing farm loans, said that the achievement was outstanding as banks are presently facing crises in dearth of loan takers.
“Chief Minister Raman Singh has announced to cut short the rate of interest of farm loan from three to one per cent this year and this is probably the reason farmers taking interest to avail loans,” a senior official in the department said. The loan disbursed through the cooperative banks this year is Rs 424.17 crore more than the loans bestowed to the farmers last year, he added.
The state government had in fact increased the size of the budget allotted for the farm loan this year. “The department was given the target to disburse Rs 1651.23 crore that was about Rs 170 crore more than the size fixed last year,” the officials added.
Banking on the good monsoon that the state had received this year, Chhattisgarh government has set a target to produce 7.3 million tones of food grains in the kharif 2012-13.
The estimated foodgrain production target set by the state government for the current kharif season is two per cent higher as compared to production in the kharif 2011-12. Last year, the state has produced 7.22 million tonne of foodgrain.
The state government has set the target to sow paddy crop in 3.60 million hectare of area in kharif 2012-13 as against last year’s 3.61 million hectare. It was easily achieved. The state estimates to produce 6.48 million tonnes of rice this year as against last year’s 6.36 million tonnes. In 2010, the state had produced 6.1 million tonnes of rice.
