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The Andhra Pradesh Government has decided to come up with a new enactment to safeguard the interest of tenant farmers in the State, which will enable them to access institutional credit and insurance facilities, while protecting the interest of owners.
The State Cabinet, which met here today approved the Andhra Pradesh Land Licensed Cultivators Act, 2011, which is expected to be placed before the legislature during the ongoing budget session.
Loan eligibility card
The enactment follows the Government approval of the recommendations made by the Koneru Ranga Rao Committee on land reforms. According to the recommendations, farmers would be issued loan eligibility card that will enable them to access institutional credit without affecting the ownership rights of the land owner.
Accordingly, the Government would consider the necessity of recording the right in crops and claiming the benefits of crop insurance, input subsidy among others, by the licensed cultivator.
According to the provisions of the enactment, it is proposed to provide loan eligibility cards to cultivators who have taken up licensed cultivation of land. The Act provides licensed cultivators with access to public financial institutions for loan, crop insurance, input subsidy and agricultural inputs among other facilities normally available to land owners. This move comes in the backdrop of concerns expressed by tenant farmers that no one is bothered about safeguarding their interest and that they often are exploited.
The enactment also will provide safeguards to the rights of the land owners or pattadars (passbook owners) of the land.
Earlier, in the State Legislative Assembly, the Chief Minister, Mr N. Kiran Kumar Reddy, assured the House that a new enactment to protect tenant farmers would be brought about. On a day with repeated adjournments, he intervened and assured that the interest of Scheduled Caste and Schedule Tribes would be safeguarded. He also mentioned that the State Government plans to invest significantly to help farm community in the State.
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