Owing to fund crunch, state unable to give its share in Centre’s Rs 3,049-crore scheme
The Maharashtra government will not contribute its share to the Rs 3,049 crore financial aid being provided to drought-hit farmers by the Centre. Usually, the state adds a contribution of 40 per cent to the amount the Centre gives.
Despite assurances that it would help farmers more than the former Congress-NCP regime, the state government has been unable to keep its promise owing to its weak financial position. The government however said it has helped farmers through various schemes.
On December 30 last year, the state government received an aid of Rs 3,049 crore from the Centre. Of this, the state has been distributing Rs 6,800 per hectare for dryland farming, Rs 13,500 per hectare for horticulture and Rs 18,000 per hectare for orchard. It has not been able to help cotton farmers in this package, upsetting the Marathwada region that has 80 per cent of cotton farming. NCP MLC Amarsinh Pandit from Marathwada alleged, “It is a conspiracy of pro-Vidarbha government to ruin farmers in Marathwada when a majority of them are cotton growers.”
A senior official in the finance department admitted on condition of anonymity that the state is reeling under a financial burden of a few thousand crores. However, he said it has taken some measures earlier to help farmers. “The state has given Rs 1,072 crore for crop losses, Rs 421 crore compensation to farmers hit by unseasonal rains, Rs 20 crore for repairing farmers’ homes, Rs 690 crore towards crop insurance, Rs 60 crore for waiving farmers’ loans, Rs 117 crore for restructuring loans, and Rs 950 crore for distribution of subsidised foodgrains to farmers in drought-prone areas. The state has lost Rs 4,000 crore after withdrawing LBT and Rs 700 crore after toll waiver,” he said.
In comparison, the Congress-NCP government gave farmers '10,000 per hectare for dryland farming, Rs 15,000 per hectare for horticulture, and Rs 25,000 per hectare for orchards in 2013-14. Congress state president Ashok Chavan has already termed the Centre’s aid as “meagre” when the drought situation is worse than 1972. Agriculture minister Eknath Khadse termed this as the opposition’s “malicious” agenda. “We have helped farmers more as compared to the Congress and NCP. We have not cut down any financial help meant for farmers. The help during Congress-NCP regime was for hailstorms and unseasonal rains and cannot be compared with the drought situation,” he said.
