Sow a New Deal

Farm loan waivers do bring respite to debt-ridden farmers. But is it the only solution?

- Richard Mahapatra

THE NEW Uttar Pradesh (UP) government has kept its promise of waiving farm loans. For a state worst-hit by demonetisation as well as multiple crop losses in recent years, the news is definitely a welcome one. Also, as the winter crop is expected to be a bumper one, farmers can hope for better conditions in the near future.

But will it be a definite turn for good in farmers’ lives? More than that, is farm waiver the only solution to the many ills that afflict Indian farmers? These are questions that need urgent probing as media reports point towards a number of state governments replicating the UP decision. In southern India, which is reeling from a severe drought, there are strong demands for farm loan waivers. The Union government is under pressure to declare a universal farm loan waiver like that of 2008. Many states are going to face elections to legislative assemblies and there will be the general election in less than 24 months. So the government is reportedly seriously examining such a waiver. If that happens, India will be doing so for the fifth time since Independence.