Patiala, May 8
Farmers affiliated with the Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) Dakaunda on Thursday staged a protest outside the head office of the Government Kisan Cooperative Bank in Patiala as part of a statewide agitation over the alleged delay in disbursing crop loans.
The protest was organized following a call given by BKU Dakaunda across Punjab to demonstrate outside government cooperative banks. Farmers gathered outside the Patiala headquarters and raised slogans against the state government and bank authorities.
Farmer leaders alleged that under the cooperative societies system, farmers are provided “Hadd Karz” (crop limit loans) to support cultivation expenses. They claimed that although the state government had announced an increase in the loan limit in this year’s budget, farmers are not even receiving the same amount that was disbursed last year.
The union leaders further stated that many farmers had already repaid their previous crop loans, but officials were allegedly not issuing fresh credit limits, causing serious difficulties ahead of the sowing season.
BKU Dakaunda leaders warned that if the government does not intervene and ensure the immediate release of the pending loan amounts, farmers would be forced to intensify their agitation in the coming days.
