Farmers told to pay loan by Mar 31 to get subsidy

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, February 14

With a view to pass on the benefits of interest subsidy on crop loans to farmers during the current rabi season, the state Cooperation Department has advised its member tillers to deposit their recovery payments by March 31 on the loans taken during kharif 2017.

This offer was made by Additional Chief Secretary Cooperation DP Reddy during a state-level review meeting of the department here today.

He said that members of primary co-operative agriculture societies in Punjab could avail the benefit of interest subsidy of 3 per cent by paying their pending crop loans pertaining to kharif 2017. They could receive crop loans for the current rabi season, besides deposits of debt relief amounts into their accounts.

He told the field officials of the Cooperative Department and bank employees to make the members of all cooperative societies aware that the debt relief announced by the state government would not be affected by the recovery of their debt as the basis of the debt relief scheme was the amount standing in their account by March 31, 2017.