Maharashtra farmers set to launch agitation over loan waiver

Farmers’ organisations in Maharashtra have once again decided to launch an agitation on November 10 against the Devendra Fadnavis government over its poor handling of the loan waiver issue.

A decision was taken on Tuesday at a steering committee meeting, which was attended by members of Shetkari Sangthana, Kisan Sabha and several district farmers’ unions.

Ajit Navale, the convenor of the steering committee, told mediapersons that the Chief Minister had earlier agreed to provide loan waiver to the 89-lakh farmers in the State. Now that number has been reduced to 45-lakh farmers, thus making rest of the farmers ineligible for the loan waiver programme.

These farmers have been removed from the lists because they could not fulfill the criteria, which were very hard to comply with, he said

Therefore, the State Government should not insist on such impossible criteria and provide the loan waiver en mass to the 89-lakh farmers in the State.

The farmers are also opposing the State government utility Mahadiscom, which is harassing them for their pending electricity bills, he said.

He said that the farmers who are being harassed by Mahadiscom will unite and go to the offices of the utility and lockout the offices from November 10.

The leader of Shetkari Sangthana, Raghunath Patil, said that a PIL has already been filed in the High Court against the action of the utility, and an order has also been passed against the utility, but still they continue to flout the order, he said.