OTS TO PROVIDE RELIEF WORTH RS.68.55 CRORE TO 95000 DEFAULTERS
CHANDIGARH DECEMBER 20:The Punjab Government today announced One Time Settlement Scheme (OTS) to provide a major relief to the tune of Rs.68.55 crore to the nearly 95000 defaulters, who have failed to repay the loans taken from Punjab State Co-operative Banks/Central Co-operative Banks, Punjab State Co-operative Agricultural Development Banks/Primary Co-operative Agricultural Development Banks and HOUSEFED/Housing Construction Co-operative Societies.
Disclosing this here today, a spokesperson of the Chief Minister’s Office said that Punjab Chief Minister Mr. Parkash Singh Badal today approved this scheme thereby bailing out these hapless defaulters. The Punjab State Co-operative Bank and Punjab State Co-operative Agricultural Development Bank has introduced two schemes viz. Providing Buy Back facility to Owners of Land decreed in favour of Punjab Agricultural Development Banks and One Time Settlement Scheme-2011. Meanwhile, the HOUSEFED has also floated two schemes viz. Loan Agreement Relief Scheme-2011 and Flood Debt Agreement Scheme-2011 as a major reprieve to those beneficiaries, who had taken loan from it.
The scheme initiated by the PADBs would be applicable to those defaulters, whose repayment time has been lapsed by June 30, 2011. Under this scheme, the defaulters would now have to make the 20% payment of the outstanding loan within a month and the remaining 80% to be paid in two equal six monthly installments @ 9% interest. If any defaulters deposited the entire loan within two months, then he would be entitled for a rebate of 10%. This scheme would give a benefit to the tune of Rs. 9.17 crore to nearly 72000 farmers across the state, added the spokesperson.
According to the scheme introduced by the HOUSEFED, 10811 defaulters who have failed to repay the loan by March 31, 2011 would be given relief from the interest and penal interest worth Rs. 57.25 crore. This scheme would be open till September 30, 2012 thereby facilitating as many as 168 defaulters who would get back their land and house property mortgaged with the banks as security against the loans advanced to them. These defaulters would now have to repay their outstanding loans to the HOUSEFED at a simple interest @ 12% without any penal interest.
Under the Flood Debt Agreement Relief Scheme 2011, only 25% of the outstanding amount of loan would be recovered from 11359 defaulters, who had taken loan in 1988 to cope up with the situation in the wake of floods. As per records the total outstanding amount to the tune of Rs.23.18 crore was to be repaid by these defaulters as on March 31, 2011. This scheme would be open till September 30, 2012 to bail out these defaulters.
