GILGIT, Aug 16: The Zarai Taraqiati Bank (ZTBL) has described a number of small farmers of the Ghizer district as defaulters and warned them that if they do not pay their dues soon their property will be forfeited.

The farmers are panicking after learning that they could lose their land or other property if they fail to pay back the money owed by them.

Small farmers have been banking on empty assurances of local politicians, a ZTBL official said.

He said the bank had issued final notices to more than 50 defaulters and warned them to retire their loans within two weeks.

“From time to time, we have been telling them to return the money but they just mocked the notices.

“We can do nothing to make the defaulters feel better because final notices have been served after adopting requisite legal procedures,” the official added.

The final notice, he said, informed the defaulters that all kinds of political announcements and assurances about getting small loans waived remained unsubstantiated, adding that even the president had been of no help in this regard.

The notice said farmers should not wait for further loss of time in the hope of any relief coming their way.

Sources in the ZTBL said that farmers in various areas had obtained loans amounting to more than Rs700 million until 2004, adding that they had been reluctant to pay them back because of politicians’ assurances during their visits and election campaigns while mark-up on these loans multiplied.

They said that failure in recovery had forced the bank to initially cut its staff and eventually roll back its regional operations, hurting farmers who regularly repaid their instalments.

The official said that the ZTBL was unable to extend fresh loans because of the massive default and recovery of bad loans was the only task it had been assigned to accomplish in the region.