Punjab farmers’ plight: Not many takers to head debt-settlement forums

Under fire for failure tackle indebtedness leading spurt in farmer suicides, the Akali-BJP government has decided to constitute district-level forums for agriculture debt settlement before the assembly session beginning September 19.

Under fire for failure tackle indebtedness leading spurt in farmer suicides, the Akali-BJP government has decided to constitute district-level forums for agriculture debt settlement before the assembly session beginning September 19.

But the delayed efforts have hit a hurdle as there are not many takers to head the three-member forums. Reason: The remuneration “seem to be too less”.

As per the Punjab Settlement of Agricultural Indebtedness Act, 2016, a retired session judge or an additional session judge would head the district forum and will be paid Rs 5,000 per sitting. But he cannot address more than 20 sittings in a month, entailing a maximum monthly remuneration of Rs 1lakh. It is being said that those heading the forums can otherwise earn more.

“We received only seven applications for the post of which two were rejected due to technical reasons and we are left with only candidates,” said agriculture director JS Bains.

In a fix over the lukewarm response, the government has now decided to go ahead with five forums, to be constituted at the division-level at Patiala, Jalandhar, Ferozepur, Faridkot and Rupnagar.

“We have been asked to complete the process by next week. Covering all districts will take time,” said Bains.

As made mandatory by the Act, the three-member district forum will include a farmer and an arhtiya (commission agent). As per reports, the government has chosen five farmers and five commission agents to represent these forums at their level, and they will hand over the lists to the agriculture directorate.

Farmer suicides have been on the rise in the state due to crop failure, less yield, ever shrinking income and mounting debt. The state government was under pressure to bring in a law to deal with situation. The bill was proposed in 2001 and then in 2006. But it took the government 10 years to notify the Act.

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The forums will have the power to declare the debt as having been discharged and waive the entire loan amount with interest and order release of property mortgaged by a debtor

Their provisions are limited to only non-institutional agricultural debts up to Rs 15 lakh – mainly loans given out by commission agents. The forum can’t deal with the cases of loans taken by villagers for activities other than agriculture or institutional loans

Though act mandates transfer all disputes of loan amount up to Rs 15 lakh pending in civil courts to these forums

Of the around Rs 36,000 crore debt on Punjab farmers, an estimated Rs 12,000 crore is non-institutional given by commission agents. Over and above, there is non-agricultural rural loan of Rs 27,000 crore on the farmers which doesn’t fall under the purview of these forums