Congress-ruled Madhya Pradesh focuses on own loan waiver scheme, delays PM Kisan Nidhi

NEW DELHI: Congress-ruled Madhya Pradesh is focussing on its own loan waiver promise before the model code of conduct for the Lok Sabha elections comes into play, rather than the PM Kisan Samman Nidhi scheme under which the Centre is to send the first instalment of Rs 2,000 into the bank accounts of farmers.

MP will complete the waiver of loans worth Rs 10,123 crore of 25 lakh farmers by this Friday. It is also expected to be the main election pitch of the Congress in the elections in the state with 29 seats. Chief minister Kamal Nath attended functions all over the state, including in Vidisha on Tuesday and Sagar on Wednesday, to distribute loan waiver certificates of his scheme to farmers. However, the state is still to send the list of beneficiary farmers — estimated to be 75 lakh — under PM Kisan Nidhi scheme to the Centre.

“The MP government is not sending the list of farmers as it feels Modi will benefit if the money goes into the accounts of the farmers,” former chief minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan said. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in a rally in Dhar, said he was pained that not a single farmer of Madhya Pradesh was among the 1.01 crore farmers in the country who got the first instalment of Rs 2,000 under the central scheme in their bank accounts on February 24. “I am waiting for the list of farmers to send the money. They (Congress) think if Rs 2,000 reaches farmers, toh unki naak kat jayegi (state government will lose face),” he said.


The total loan waiver under the state’s Jai Kisan Fasal Rin Maafi Yojana is expected to be Rs 38,000 crore, covering nearly 55 lakh farmers. But only Rs 10,123 crore of loans of 25 lakh farmers are being waived in Phase-1, with Nath saying the rest would be waived afterwards.

Modi has attacked the state government saying the loan waiver promise had not been delivered. “This is their double-face policy on farmers. Their leader (Rahul Gandhi) promised to change the CM if full loan waiver is not done in 10 days. Has the CM been changed? Isn’t same CM still in the chair,” Modi asked.