Karnataka govt to waive interest on overdue loans of district cooperative banks: CM Siddaramaiah
Bengaluru: The Karnataka government has decided to waive interest on medium and long-term overdue loans of District Cooperative Central and Primary Cooperative Agriculture and Rural Development banks, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said on Friday, claiming that it would benefit more than 57,000 farmers.
Presenting the 2024-25 budget in the Assembly, he said an Agriculture Development Authority will be created under the chairmanship of the Chief Minister to facilitate effective implementation of policies related to agriculture and allied activities.
"Our government has decided to waive off interest on medium and long-term overdue loans of DCC and Primary Cooperative Agriculture and Rural Development (PICARD) banks. This will benefit more than 57,000 farmers. As a result of this scheme, the DCC/ PICARD banks will be able to recover loans to the tune of Rs.496 crore," Siddaramaiah said.
He said the government will provide ₹450 crore financial assistance by way of compensation to the banks under the scheme. "This decision will bring about a considerable improvement in the financial condition of these banks," the chief minister said.
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Siddaramaiah said that in 2023-24 it was decided to extend the loan limit for interest-free short term loan from ₹3 lakh to ₹5 lakh and, similarly, the upper limit for medium and long-term loans, which are provided at a subsidised interest rate of 3 per cent, was raised from ₹10 lakh to 15 lakh.
In the current year, the targeted lending through the cooperative sector is ₹27,000 crore, he said, adding that this would benefit more than 36 lakh farmers in the state.
To encourage integrated agriculture, various schemes related to the agricultural sector will be consolidated and a new scheme called 'Karnataka Raitha Samruddhi Yojane' will be started from this year, the chief minister said.
A new programme "Namma Millet" will be started, under which processed millets and value-added millets will be made available at affordable prices, he added.
To promote sustainable agriculture in drought-affected and rain-fed areas of the state and to aid soil and water conservation, 5,000 water bodies will be created over a period of five years, the chief minister said.
To promote processing, value addition and export of agricultural and horticultural produce, food parks will be established near airports under Public-Private Partnership, Siddaramaiah said.
In the current year, these food parks will be established at Sogane in Shivamogga district, Ittangihala in Vijayapura District and Pujenahalli village in Bengaluru rural district, he informed in the Assembly.
"Kisan Malls" will be opened in select districts to provide farmers with horticulture related technical guidance, market connectivity, farm implements and agro products under one roof, he said.
Floriculture is practised in 40,000 hectares of land in the State, Siddaramaiah said. To promote sales and exports of floricultural crops, a well-equipped commercial floriculture market of international standards will be set up in Bengaluru city under Public-Private Partnership, he added.
A "Spice Park" will be developed in Chikkamagaluru district under public-private partnership to encourage spice growing farmers and promote export of spices, he added.
To encourage dairy farming among women, six per cent interest subsidy will be provided on the condition of timely repayment of the loan availed for buying cow/ buffalo, the chief minister announced.
For the prevention of atrocities on nomadic shepherds and their properties, an Act will be enacted, he said. The government also plans to invest ₹3,000 crore in the coming years for all-round development of the fisheries sector, Siddaramaiah said. For emergency evacuation of fishermen in the event of health emergencies and accidents, the State's first sea ambulance will be introduced at a cost of ₹seven crore, the chief minister said. The government appreciates the Central Government's decision to recognise the contribution of M S Swaminathan in the field of agriculture by awarding him with the Bharat Ratna title, he said.
"In the same spirit, we will request the Central Government to calculate MSP based on the formula of cost of cultivation plus 50 per cent profit as recommended by the Swaminathan Committee."
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Over 350 illegal religious structures removed along Nepal border
Lucknow, May 11 (PTI): The Uttar Pradesh government on Sunday said that more than 350 unauthorised religious sites, including madrasas, mosques, mazars and Eidgahs, have been identified and subjected to sealing or demolition in recent days, an official statement issued here said.
Acting on Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's clear directive that no religious encroachment will be tolerated, the administration in districts such as Pilibhit, Shravasti, Balrampur, Bahraich, Siddharthnagar and Maharajganj has launched a sweeping campaign, it said.
The authorities have systematically identified illegal structures and taken strict action, continuing operations even on Sunday.
The chief minister has made it clear that encroachment in the name of any religion will not be allowed and all violators, especially those running unrecognised religious institutions, will face legal consequences, the statement said.
On May 10 and 11, 104 madrasas, one mosque, five mazars and two Eidgahs built illegally on public and private land were identified in Shravasti. All were issued notices and sealed, it said.
One illegal madrasa on public land was demolished and two unrecognized madrasas on private land were sealed, the statement added.
In Bahraich, officials identified 13 madrasas, eight mosques, two mazars and one Eidgah illegally constructed on government land.
After issuing notices, five were sealed and 11 were demolished, including eight madrasas, two mosques and one mazar, the statement said.
In Siddharthnagar, the authorities identified four mosques and 18 madrasas and one more madrasa for illegal construction. Notices were issued to these structures. Five madrasas were sealed and nine were demolished. In total, action was taken against 23 illegal structures in the district, it said.
In Maharajganj’s Nautanwa tehsil, Parsamalik village, an unrecognized madrasa operating on Maktab land was shut down based on a report submitted by the District Minority Welfare Officer.
The building’s keys were handed over to the local police station in-charge. So far, 29 madrasas and five mazars constructed through encroachment on public and private land have been demolished in the district.
In past two days in Lakhimpur Kheri, two mosques, one Eidgah on public land along with eight madrasas on private land were found to be illegally constructed.
Of the 13 structures identified, one was served a notice, nine were sealed and three have been demolished so far, the statement said.
The district authorities in Pilibhit have identified an illegal mosque built on public land in Bharatpur village, covering an area of 0.0310 hectares.
According to the district magistrate, a notice has been issued to the parties involved, seeking a response within 15 days. Action against the illegal construction will be taken after the notice period ends, it said.
On Sunday, an under-construction madrasa on public land in Virpur Semra village, Tulsipur tehsil, was demolished in Balrampur. So far, 30 madrasas, 10 mazars and one Eidgah have been demolished in the district.
Ten of them were built illegally on public land, while 20 were constructed without authorization on private land, the statement said.
