Mangaluru : A total ₹ 1 lakh of 9,798 farmers Outstanding loan in Dakshina Kannada have been waived so far with the State government releasing ₹ 96.68 crore, said Minister in-charge of the district U.T. Khader here on Thursday.

Talking to reporters, Mr. Khader said that a total of 67,627 farmers from the district have submitted claims for waiver of farm loan up to ₹ 1 lakh.

The total amount to be waived is ₹ 562.13 crore.

Mr. Khader said that these applications were being scrutinised first by the respective bank managers, followed by the Cooperative Development Officers (CDO) and the Assistant Registrars of Cooperative Societies (ARCs).

While all the applications have been scrutinised by the bank managers, 66,164 claims were cleared by CDOs. The Assistant Registrars have cleared 24,595 of which claims of 9,798 farmers were settled.

The government was committed towards waiving loans and help farmers who are in distress, Mr. Khader said.

Deputy Registrar of Cooperative Societies B.K. Saleem said that these 9,798 farmers have taken loan from the district apex bank through the Primary Agriculture Cooperative Societies. “The money released by the government reached the apex bank and the loans are being settled,” he said. The scrutiny of the applications will be completed at the earliest, he added.