Area
India
Commodity Group
Oilseeds, oils and meals
Commodity
Farm loans
Date
01/06/2017
Policy Category
Production
Policy Instrument
Agricultural policy
Description
Announced agreement by the States of Maharashtra, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh to partially waive farm loans to address growing rural distress caused by low crop prices, as last year\'s record harvest led to burdensome food grain supplies.
Notes
The states of Maharashtra, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh agreed to partially waive farm loans to address growing rural distress caused by low crop prices following oversupply. India is holding large levels of food grains from last years record harvest, while exports have stalled for a number of reasons. Maharashtra and Punjab intend to forgive the equivalent of, respectively, USD 5.27 billion and USD 1.5 billion in farm loans, effectively writing off debts of many small farm holdings. Reportedly, the measures could benefit close to 10 million farmers, with write-offs of up to INR 150 000200 000 per farmer (USD 2 3253 100).
