LAHORE, Sept 16: Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz has said the government will consider launch of an insurance scheme to help farmers return loans on reduced rates, but the proposal to write off loans of those farmers who die cannot be obliged.

He was responding to a demand by farmers to write off agricultural loans of small farmers in case of death of the person who takes loan to facilitate his orphan children.

Hamid Malhi of the Farmers Associates Pakistan forwarded the proposal to the prime minister at the Governor’s House here on Sunday night. He informed the premier that billions of rupees of loans of landlords were written off in the past, but the same concession was not given to orphans who have to sell their sole income resource of small lands to pay back the loans taken by their deceased fathers.

The prime minister said banks were not ready to write off loans any more because it would damage their business.

In response to another issue of unavailability of pesticides to protect cotton crop from pest attacks, Mr Aziz said the government would take effective steps in this regard.

Speaking at a ceremony held at the Fortress Stadium to distribute cheques among the deserving graduates from vocational training institutes for launching their own businesses, he stressed that continuity in policies was needed to advance the public welfare programmes.

An amount of Rs60 million was distributed among 3,000 graduates from the Baitul Maal fund. Each graduate got a cheque of Rs20,000.

He said the voters’ age limit had been reduced to 18 years to acknowledge the importance of young people and entrust upon them responsibility to play role in the national politics.—APP