Fruit, Vegetable, and Flower growers of Himachal seek loan waiver

 Fruit, Vegetable & Flower Growers Association demanded the union government to waive off all farm loans which would be a major relief for 4.50 lakh Kissan Credit Card(KCC) holders of Himachal Pradesh as their crops have been damaged in the heavy rainfall.

In a letter written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday, the state convenor of FV&FGA Mr Harish Chauhan said that due to inhospitable weather and extremely heavy rainfall, their crops have been extensively damaged.

He said that growers likely expect only 20 to 25 percent yield this year which is likely to plunge them into debt trap due to failure of the crop.

All fruit, vegetable, and flower Growers are victims of excessive rain and cloud bursts and washing away of crops in the field or orchard. They have suffered a lot of damage to crops, uprooting of fruit-loaded trees and cloudbursts, and flashflood floods.

The prolonged wet weather also damaged the apple crop and vegetables and orchards were infested by rot and early leaf fall disease.

The failure of the crop left most of the growers having to bear expensive labour, pesticides fertilizers, and transportation costs therefore couldn’t repay annual instalments of KCC limit and interest.

There are around 4.50 lakh KCC holders in the state and they have borrowed around five to six lakh.

All the horticulturists are facing huge financial loss and many are rendered homeless due to the washing down of houses in the state.

He said that the government should waive off all crop and land-based loans in the wake of natural disasters. 

Due to the failure of crops, it is becoming difficult to fulfill day-to-day needs to them like shopping, and paying children’s fees.

He said that in such a situation, now all the banks are pressurizing them for recovery of KCC debt in the month of September.

 He said that waiver would save the apple and Off-season vegetable economy if the Union government announced this important decision.