When is NDRF releasing funds for Maha, asks HC

Nagpur: The Nagpur bench of Bombay High Court on Thursday added National Drought Relief Fund (NDRF) as a respondent in a PIL alleging miscalculation of anewari (crop value) by the state government for farmers’ suicide prone districts like Yavatmal and Washim.
A division bench comprising justice Bhushan Gavai and justice Swapna Joshi, while issuing notice to NDRF, also asked when it would be releasing funds for Maharashtra, which is reeling under worst-ever drought.The hearing was then adjourned for a week.
The court’s poser came while hearing a PIL by Devanand Pawar, an agriculturist from Yavatmal, and Gram Vikas Bahuddeshiya Sanstha (PIL No. 3/2016) through counsel Anil Kilor. The petitioners contended that the Amravati divisional commissioner office calculated crop value of over 2,158 villages from five districts in just two days, which is seemingly impossible task.
The information was collected through collectors of Akola, Buldhana, Washim, Amravati and Yavatmal. The petitioner claimed that all figures were filled up in haste while sitting in office. Shockingly, due to wrong calculations, the villages, particularly from suicide capital of Yavatmal, were deprived of slew of benefits like waiver in school fees and restructuring of loans, among others, the petitioners stated.
During last hearing, the court through an interim mandatory order directed the government to include about 4,000 villages in Amravati, Akola, Yavatmal and Washim districts, as recommended by Amravati divisional commissioner through a communication of November 7, into its resolution (GR) of October 20. Terming the situation as “alarming”, the court sternly told government to complete formalities by Wednesday by issuing a corrigendum for amending the GR.
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Release funds for crop loans before May 15: HC
While hearing a plea (PIL No 76/2015) by Pragatisheel Shetkari Mandal, the Nagpur bench of Bombay High Court on Thursday added Maharashtra State Cooperative Bank (MSCB) as respondent in the case. A division bench comprising justice Bhushan Gavai and justice Swapna Joshi issued notice to MSCB while asking it to reply within a week.
The court made it clear that the funds meant for distribution of crops loans to farmers should be in their hands before May 15 and it’s up to the government on how to achieve it.
Earlier, the government informed that it had issued a resolution (GR) on April 11 and it would release funds towards loans for farmers by April 30 through National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD). Those funds would be routed through MSCB to district central cooperative banks (DCCBs) to farmers. State revenue secretary, divisional joint registrar of cooperatives in Amravati, DCCB Akola, NABARD and Akola collector are respondents in the case.