Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Feb 8: Senior BJP leader and former Minister, Choudhary Sukhnandan Kumar has appealed to Central Government for the revival of Cooperatives in Jammu and Kashmir and one-time scheme for loan waiver for the Jammu based farmers pending since 1987.
Talking to reporters here, today he also demanded that there should be no GST for farmers on purchases related to cultivation and other agriculture related activities in entire country.
The former Minister said, a delegation of Jammu based farmers led by him met with Union Minister, Anurag Thakur at New Delhi and apprised him about the genuine demands of farmers.”
He said in Jammu region, the Cooperative system failed as the Government during the V P Singh regime accepted to waive off the loans but the loans were waived only up to Kharief crop 1986 and not for the corresponding year due to some misinformation and misunderstanding which led to ultimate closure of Cooperative shops. In rural areas which supplied agriculture related seed, urea and fertilizers other related items making the farmers to face hardships in procuring all these items from the far off places, he added.
There were 376 multi-purpose and primary cooperative societies. And automatically they were shut off and all farmers had turned defaulters, Sukhanandan said, adding “the loan in Jammu province must be around Rs 19 crore and its interest around Rs 30 Crore. “We appeal the Central Government to resolve this issue once so the Cooperative system can be revived and farmers can work with more zeal and enthusiasm.”
“This will not only boost the morale of young farmer but also make availability of seed and fertilizers at their door steps, otherwise the heavy prices in the open market and the black marketing of the fertilizers have broken the farmers spine to procure agriculture related products. In result of this, the collection of yield was also stopped, “ Sukhnandan said.
Moreover, Cooperatives help build sustainable communities in rural areas. The role of Cooperatives in agricultural development is numerous. Cooperated growers enter a bigger market to sell their goods and buy input supplies at lower prices. More opportunities mean better economical development and the rural population’s welfare, he said.
The second demand for farmers is the waiver of GST on the items related to agriculture for the farmers in the entire country, Sukhnandan said, adding “As the Finance Ministry has clarified that renting or leasing of land by farmers for agriculture, forestry, fishing or animal husbandry is exempt from the GST, we demand the 100 per cent waiver of GST on agriculture related items procured from the market.”
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