Jaipur, March 23 – Hanuman Beniwal, the National President of the Rashtriya Loktantrik Party and a Member of Parliament from Nagaur, raised the issue of the growing debt burden on farmers and demanded clarity on farm loan waivers in the Lok Sabha on Monday.
Union Finance Minister, Nirmala Sitharaman, responded to the query.
Expressing deep disappointment, MP Beniwal criticised the Central government's stance, calling it insensitive towards the distress of farmers.
In her response, the Finance Minister clearly stated that "no scheme for a complete waiver of farmers' loans is currently under consideration by the Central government."
Reacting to this response, Beniwal said that this is deeply distressing for farmers who are already burdened with mounting debt, facing continuous agricultural losses, and struggling to sustain their livelihoods.
He emphasised that official data itself highlights the severity of the crisis.
According to the Finance Minister's response, agricultural credit disbursement across the country has grown at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 15 per cent over the past three financial years (2022–23 to 2024–25).
Beniwal argued that this reflects a steady rise in farmers' indebtedness without corresponding relief.
He further stated that such figures expose the claim of "doubling farmers' income" as a political slogan rather than a reality.
Government data reveals that in Rajasthan alone, outstanding agricultural loans have reached Rs 1,92,293 crore, while the total outstanding farm debt across the country stands at Rs 31,34,808 crore.
MP Beniwal alleged that the government is attempting to divert attention from core agrarian issues by highlighting schemes such as PM Kisan Samman Nidhi and PM Fasal Bima Yojana.
He asserted that to genuinely support farmers, a one-time comprehensive farm loan waiver is essential.
He further demanded that the annual assistance under the Kisan Samman Nidhi scheme be increased to Rs 1 lakh to provide meaningful financial support to farmers across the country.