(a) whether the interest subsidy on farm loans have been reduced to 2 per cent;
(b) if so, the details thereof;
(c) the guidelines issued by the Government in this regard; and
(d) the number of people who have under the scheme benefited during the current year, State-wise?
THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF FINANCE (SHRI S.S. PALANIMANICKAM)
(a) to (d): Consequent upon the Budget Announcement for 2009-10, the Government
of India approved the Interest Subvention Scheme for Short Term Crop Loans to farmers,
2009-10. Some of the salient stipulations of the scheme are:
(i) Interest subvention of 2% per annum is applicable to Public Sector Banks (PSBs),
Cooperative Banks and Regional Rural Banks (RRBs) on their own funds used for short
term crop loans upto Rs. 3,00,000/- per farmer provided the lending institutions lend
such loans @ 7% per annum.
(ii) An additional interest subvention @ 1% has been given to those prompt paying
farmers who repay their short term crop loans within the period of interest subvention
i.e. within one year of disbursement of such loans. This also implies that the prompt
paying farmers would now get short term crop loans @ 6% per annum during the year
2009-10. This benefit would not accrue to those framers who repay after one year
of availing such loans.
(iii) Interest subvention is available to fanners from the date of disbursement till
the date of repayment, subject to a maximum period of one year.
As the Scheme is under implementation, the data of number of persons benefited
during the current year, State-wise is not available.