Punjab Government has announced major changes to Kisan Credit Card (KCC) policy to provide better financial support to farmers across state.
Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann said that the policy which was formulated around 26 years ago has now been revised and updated to meet present-day needs of farmers and also said that the new policy has been designed to make agricultural loans more accessible and beneficial as now under revised system loan limits for several crops have been increased, new crops have been included for first time and entire process has been digitized to make it easier for farmers.
According to Chief Minister farmers will now receive KCC approval that will remain valid for six years and the credit limit available under the card will also increase every year along with this farmers will also be able to withdraw funds through ATM cards, UPI services and other digital banking platforms making access to money faster and a lot more convenient.
CM Mann also said that state government has issued directions to private banks regarding recovery of loans from farmers and stated that banks have been told not to seize farmers' land for loan recovery and instead use alternative methods talking about the same CM further said that banks have also been directed not to display photographs of farmers on lists of loan defaulters.
According to him such practices can cause mental stress and humiliation and said these steps have been taken to ensure that farmers are not pushed towards extreme actions such as suicide and he claimed that farmer suicides in Punjab have declined due to government's efforts and said that a recent study has supported this claim.
CM Mann also announced an increase in credit limit for wheat cultivation as earlier cooperative banks provided crop loans of up to ₹24,380 per acre for wheat farming but now under revised policy this limit has now been increased to ₹30,000 per acre.
In another important decision ngovernment has introduced a separate provision for crop residue management with this farmers will now be able to avail an additional loan of ₹2,000 per acre specifically for management and disposal of crop residue or stubble.
The Chief Minister said this facility did not exist earlier.
Sugarcane farmers have received significant relief under revised policy as earlier credit limit for sugarcane cultivation was ₹44,000 per acre but now Punjab Government has now increased this limit to ₹1 lakh per acre.
Chief Minister said this decision will help sugarcane growers manage rising cultivation costs and improve their farming operations.
Punjab Government has also expanded list of crops eligible for loans under KCC scheme and Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann said that several agricultural and horticultural crops that previously had no credit facilities will now be covered.
Under the revised credit limits:
Poplar trees will be eligible for loans up to ₹20,000 per acre.
Bamboo cultivation will get loans up to ₹13,000 per acre.
Jamun (Indian Blackberry) trees will be eligible for loans up to ₹22,000 per acre.
Lemongrass cultivation will receive loans up to ₹30,000 per acre.
CM said that these changes will encourage farmers to diversify their crops and explore new farming opportunities beyond traditional crops.
The government has also increased loan limits for several vegetable and horticultural crops and under the revised policy:
Garlic cultivation will be eligible for loans up to ₹1,57,372 per acre.
Onion cultivation will receive loans up to ₹92,686 per acre.
Hybrid tomato cultivation will be eligible for loans up to ₹80,981 per acre.
CM said that credit limit for vegetables and horticultural crops has been increased from around ₹32,000 per acre to as high as ₹1.57 lakh per acre depending on crop.
In a major step towards promoting modern and high-value farming Punjab Government has included several new crops in KCC system for first time.
Mann said that fruit cultivation has now been brought under credit facility framework and farmers growing dragon fruit who previously had no access to loans under this system will now be able to avail loans up to ₹47,000 per acre.
Similarly a credit limit of ₹16,000 per acre has been fixed for chia seed cultivation for first time.
Apart from agriculture and horticulture Punjab Government has also increased credit limits for fisheries sector and according to Chief Minister in one category the credit limit has been increased to ₹2.5 lakh while in another category it has been raised to ₹5.5 lakh.
He said that strengthening credit support for fisheries and other allied agricultural activities will help create additional sources of income for farmers and rural families.
CM Mann said that revised Kisan Credit Card policy is aimed at strengthening Punjab's agriculture sector and helping farmers move towards crop diversification and by increasing loan limits, introducing new crops under credit coverage, digitizing the process and improving access to financial services government hopes to provide greater support to farmers across state.
