question_answer

Direction: Q. 6 to 10

Read the given case study and answer the questions.

Since ages, farmers in India taken resource to debt. In the earlier times, the same was informal sources. Since independence with the efforts of the government, formal sector has actively come into the picture. Farmers borrow not only to meet their investment needs but also to satisfy their personal needs. Uncertainty of income caused by factors like crop failure caused by irregular rainfall, reduction in ground water table, locust/other pest attack etc.

These reasons push them into the clutches of the private moneylenders, who charge exorbitant rates of interest which add to their miseries.

Various governments in India, at different times for different reasons, introduced debt relief/debt waiver schemes. These schemes are used by governments as a quick means to extricate farmers from their indebtedness, helping to restore their capacity to invest and produce, in short to lessen the miseries of the farmers across India. The cost and benefits of such debt relief schemes are, however, a widely debated topic among the economists.

Some economists argue that such schemes are extremely beneficial to the poor and marginalised farmers while others argue that these schemes add to the fiscal burden of the government, others believe that these schemes may develop the expectation of repeated bailouts among farmers which may spoil the credit culture among farmers.

Uncertainty of farmers in India is majorly caused by ......... .

A) irregular rainfall

B) unavailability of loans

C) lack of skills

D) None of the above