Farmers' loan waiver if announced in UP will extend to other states too: Maha Finance Minister Mungantiwar

Maharashtra Finance Minister Sudhir Mungantiwar on Wednesday said the loan waiver for farmers if announced in one state, will extend to other states too.

“The Prime Minister has announced loan waiver for farmers of Uttar Pradesh. It cannot be that it will be limited to UP.  The Centre will not offer loan waiver only to one state. When loan waiver is announced in UP, the Centre will offer it to farmers of Maharashtra too,” Mungantiwar said, speaking to a news channel.

NDA government increased the budgetary allocation for agriculture substantially, and the result was that schemes such as ‘Jalyukta Shivar’ (water conservation) and crop insurance were being carried out smoothly, he said.

The BJP-led government in Maharashtra was not against the loan waiver, Mungantiwar said. The opposition Congress and NCP, along with BJP’s ruling alliance partner Shiv Sena, have tried to corner the government in the ongoing budget session of Maharashtra legislature, demanding loan waiver for farmers.