Farmer, money lender and banker

Election 2004 has clea
25 June 2004

Election 2004 has clearly shown that agriculture is the burning issue of the days. Agriculture faces three basic concerns: credit, farm productivity and marketing. In the first of a three part series we discuss the problem of a farmer obtaining timely credit from a bank.

The story of a farmer's encounters with a money lender and a banker, by Uday Chatterjee

In the third week of May, Kesaviah woke up early in the morning one day and stepped out of his hut. He got the whiff of rain in the breeze and instinct told him that it was time for him to start ploughing and sowing paddy seeds in his modest three-acre farm.

Memories of the previous harvest came thick and fast. At around the same time last year he had gone to the house of the village money lender. He was welcomed with open arms. After routine talk about the prospects of rains and the harvest, Kesaviah finally got what he wanted most - seeds and fertilisers, some money to buy clothes for his family and a towel for himself after putting a thumb impression on a document. The clothes and the towel were for free, he was told. Kesaviah was on cloud nine. If all went well he could get his daughter married in a few month's time

On harvest day, the money lender came to Kesaviah's field. The crop was good and both of them looked pleased. The money lender explained the provisions of the document which said that out every 10 bales of paddy yield, the money lender's share was 6 bales. His men picked up 12 bales and left. Kesaviah was crestfallen. His daughter would have to remain a spinster for one more year.

This year he was taking no chances. His nephew had studied only up to class eight but was blessed with sharp native intelligence. Kesaviah related his encounter with the money lender to his nephew. The nephew thought for a while and took a pen and paper and started scribbling furiously.