Justice Devan Ramachandran added that the credit rating of a farmer cannot be affected due to his participating the PRS scheme either.
The Court was prompted to issue the clarification on being informed of a farmer’s suicide after he failed to secure payments for paddy procurement and also because of treatment meted out to him by a bank.
“I reiterate that by no stretch can farmers, who effectively sell grains to the Government under the Paddy Procurement Scheme, can ever be construed to be borrowers by any bank, because it is only since the government requires time to make payment against it, that they are forced to avail such facility. Normally, therefore, it cannot affect their credit rating either,” the Court underscored.
Source: Barandbench
