The Congress on Tuesday hoped the BJP government in Uttar Pradesh will waive off loans of farmers to the tune of Rs 92,000 crore at its first cabinet meeting as part of its election promise.Congress communication department in-charge Randeep Singh Surjewala said that 79.45 per cent of farmers in Uttar Pradesh were marginal while 13.01 per cent farmers were small and they had great hopes of getting relief from the Uttar Pradesh government. In a series of tweets, Surjewala hoped the Yogi Adityanath-led BJP government will also provide relief to sugar growers. "The UP cabinet is meeting today. There are great hopes about loan waiver. Will the promise be fulfilled or it will be a damp squib," he asked.Surjewala said there were 2.33 crore farmers in Uttar Pradesh and 64.14 lakh had pending loan of Rs 86,241 crore from commercial banks and Rs 6,000 crore from cooperative banks.
He said marginal farmers had an average land holding of 0.44 hectare and small farmers had average land holding of 1.43 hectare. He said all these farmers were expecting help. "The BJP has waived off loans of Rs 1,40,000 crore of big industrial houses and industrialists. Will it waive off loans of Rs 92,000 crore of UP farmers," he asked. He hoped that Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Adityanath will fulfill the promise of paying arrears of sugar farmers in 14 days. He said the arrears were Rs 153 crore in 2014-15, Rs 599 crore 2015-16, and Rs 6,561 crore in 2016-17. The BJP had promised loan waiver to marginal farmers in its manifesto for the Uttar Pradesh assembly elections. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had said the decision on loan waiver will be taken at the first meeting of the state cabinet.