According to a survey conducted by the Kerala-based voluntary organization, Kerala Independent Farmers Association (KIFA), about 72 percent of the farmers in Kerala are reeling under a debt burden. On average the debt of Kerala farmers is estimated to be approximately Rs 5.46 lakh.
In the national sample survey, which was conducted in 2019, the average debt amount was estimated to be around Rs 2.42 lakh. The KIFA survey points to an increase of 2 percent in the debt rate and the doubling of debt rates per farmer.
Approximately 77 percent of farmers in the Malabar region are said to be in debt. While the percentage of farmers who got affected in the South region is 70 and the percentage from Central Kerala is around 68. The majority of farmers hit by the debt crisis are into cardamom, pineapple, and dairy farming, according to the survey report.
Reportedly, 48 percent of farmers have taken aid using Kisan Credit Cards at an interest rate of 4 percent. The survey even states that banks are reluctant for providing loans to the farmers under this scheme.
The report says that around 21 percent of the farmers have availed of private financial institutions for loans. Out of these, 14 percent of the farmers have received bank attachment notices and two percent of farmers were subject to the bank attachment proceedings.
According to the data, the survey was conducted by considering 1,572 families whereas, in the national sample survey conducted in the year 2019, 1,503 families were taken into consideration.
According to media sources, Alex Ozhukayil, the Chairman of KIFA has requested the government to waive the interest and penal interest in such cases. He has also said that the farmers should be given time to repay the principal amount and that the Minimum Support Price for coconut, rubber, and paddy must be increased.
