VP lauds loan waiver, UNPA calls it hogwash

While the Union Budget came in for some praise on Saturday from former Prime Minister V P Singh...

While the Union Budget came in for some praise on Saturday from former Prime Minister V P Singh, the United National Progressive Alliance (UNPA) called the loan waiver scheme an exercise in mere book-adjustment.

“The bold relief given to farmers in the Budget is most welcome. The farmers have been asking for loan waiver for long. It was most needed,” said V P Singh in a press release.

The former Prime Minister also welcomed benefits extended to taxpayers. However, Singh said the investment in infrastructure needed more attention than was given in the Budget.

Spokesman of the UNPA—which had disrupted Parliament over the farmers’ issue—and Samajwadi Party general secretary Amar Singh, on the other hand, said, “While the Budget announced a loan waiver of Rs 60,000 crore for the farmers, it did not make any allocation for it. This indicates that the waiver is nothing but the non-performing assets of the agricultural credit. The announcement is merely a book-adjustment by the Finance Minister.”

He, however, said even this relief was a welcome step and added that a decision on the UNPA’s support to the Budget would be taken soon after a meeting of the alliance’s leaders.

“I applaud the UPA Government even for this waiver. It is like better late than sorry,” said Amar Singh.