The state government has taken proactive steps to address the technical challenges encountered in the loan waiver program, which arose due to administrative errors. To streamline the process and ensure that eligible farmers receive the intended benefits, the government has launched the ‘Raitu Bharosa’ app. This app is designed to address issues that have prevented many farmers from benefiting from the loan waiver.
App Launch and Video Conference
After completing a trial run of the app over Sunday and Monday, the principal secretary and director of agriculture are scheduled to hold a video conference with agricultural officials from all districts on Tuesday. The focus of this meeting will be to discuss necessary changes and additions to the app, based on feedback from the trial. These modifications will be made to enhance the app’s functionality and ensure it addresses all concerns raised by the officials.
Focus on Family Grouping
One of the significant issues identified in the loan waiver process is related to family grouping. The state government has committed to waiving loans for every farmer family that has taken loans of less than Rs.2 lakh. While the waiver was initially intended for loans taken before August 15th, technical issues have left many eligible farmers without relief.
Identification of Problems
Agriculture officers have identified 31 different challenges that have prevented many from receiving their loan waivers. These issues include discrepancies in family member details on ration cards, and mismatches between names on ration cards and Aadhaar cards. To address these problems, the ‘Raitu Bharosa’ app was developed and made available within nine days.
Implementation of Family Grouping
To facilitate the loan waiver, the app has been equipped with a feature for entering the details of non-loan-waiver farmer family members (family grouping). Last Saturday, district agricultural officers were instructed to download the app across all mandals in the state. Following this, the mandal agriculture officers conducted a trial on Sunday and Monday, entering the family details of one farmer per mandal.
Collection of Details from Bankers
The state government has instructed bankers to provide details of farmers whose loans have not been waived to the mandal agriculture officers. This data collection process is expected to be completed within one or two days. Mandal agriculture officers, who have access to the app, will then visit every village to verify and enter the details of each farmer as per the information provided by the banks.
Mandatory Family Affidavit
Given the recent general transfers within the Agriculture Department, many officers have been reassigned to different mandals. To prevent any confusion during inquiries, the government has mandated that farmers provide a family affidavit. This affidavit should detail the number of non-loan-waived farmers in the family and must be signed by either the Panchayat Secretary or a Gazetted Officer. The survey officer will take a photograph of this affidavit and upload it to the app. Clear guidelines on this process will be issued by the government in the next two days.
Challenges Faced by Officers During Data Entry
Despite the efforts to streamline the process, officers have reported three key challenges during data entry:
- Inter-Mandal Loan Issues: If a farmer from one mandal has taken a crop loan from a bank in another mandal, the app does not allow for the entry of that farmer’s details.
- Relationship Entry Issues: The app currently only allows the entry of immediate family members, such as sons and daughters, making it difficult to include details for daughters-in-law, sons-in-law, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and grandparents.
- Deceased Family Members Without Aadhaar: In cases where a farmer or their spouse has passed away without an Aadhaar number, and land is registered in their name, the app does not allow for the entry of their details.
Conclusion
The state government remains committed to resolving these issues and ensuring that all eligible farmers receive the benefits of the loan waiver program. With the planned updates to the ‘Raitu Bharosa’ app and continued coordination between agricultural officials and bankers, it is expected that these challenges will be addressed promptly, bringing relief to the affected farmers.