Bengaluru: Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy has confirmed that the much- anticipated farm loan waiver will find a place in the State budget to be presented by the Congress-JD(S) coalition Government next month.

However, delivering on Kumaraswamy’s most ambitious pre-poll promise of farm loan waiver is proving an uphill task for the coalition Government, as it failed to come up with a clear action plan, even as the 15-day time sought by Kumaraswamy to unveil his road map expired on Thursday.

Meanwhile, it is learnt that a five-member committee, which will be constituted to formulate the CMP (Common Minimum Programme), will decide on the way ahead on farm loan waiver.

As a first step in this regard, the Government is planning waive off loans of farmers who had borrowed money for purchase of tractor, tiller and bullock carts meant only for agricultural use.

With both the parties in the coalition Government making their own promises on farm loan waiver, there are practical difficulties in implementing some of them.

The Committee will study all the promises and incorporate those which are practical, according to sources, which also said that as it is an issue that involves over Rs. 50,000 crores, a deadline cannot be fixed for farm loan waiver.

Farmers protest: Even as the CM has assured of announcing farm loan waiver shortly, farmers under the banner of District Unit of Karnataka Rakshana Vedike, staged a bullock cart demonstration at Manuganahalli in Mysuru taluk yesterday, urging the Government  to announce full farm loan waiver as promised. They raised slogans demanding the Government to announce loan waiver, besides putting a stop to series of farmer’s suicide.

Addressing the farmers, Vedike’s District President and BJP leader K. Madesh, who led the protest, accused the CM of failing to announce farm loan waiver within a day of coming to power.

Urging the State Government to immediately announce farm loan waiver and thus come to the rescue of the distressed farming community, Madesh warned of intensifying the protest if  the new coalition Government does not keep its promise on loan waiver.

Farmer leaders Suresh, Basavaraju, Guru, Umesh, Siddegowda, Rajesh, Jagadish, Kumar, Rohith, Sharath and others took part in the unique bullock cart protest.