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The Andhra Pradesh Tenant Farmers’ Association has demanded that the government revise its crop loan targets to ensure fair access for tenant farmers, who cultivate nearly 80% of the State’s agricultural land.

Association president Y. Radha Krishna and general secretary M. Haribabu, in a release on Wednesday (August 20), said the government must ensure that every tenant farmer receives crop loans fairly. There are over 32 lakh tenant farmers in the State, as identified by the Prof. Radhakrishnan Commission.

Of these, over 10 lakh are landless tenant farmers, while the rest cultivate both their own land and leased land. Despite these numbers, the Revenue and Agriculture departments have failed to issue identity cards to all tenant farmers. This year, the government set a target of issuing 10 lakh Crop Cultivator Rights Cards (CCRCs), but only 6 lakh have been distributed so far, they said.

They demanded that banks, revenue and agriculture departments work together transparently to issue tenant identity cards and extend loans. They also called for a joint meeting of farmers’ associations, tenant farmer groups, agricultural labour unions, bankers and officials to resolve ground-level issues.