A farmer harvests pineapples at a village under Palash upazila in Narsingdi recently. Bangladesh Bank has made a decision to reduce the limit of mortgage-free loan for 28 crops including pineapples at different rates from the new financial year. 

Bangladesh Bank has made a decision to reduce the limit of mortgage-free loan for 28 crops at different rates from the new financial year 2014-15.A BB official told New Age that the central bank had made the decision to reduce the mortgage-free loan of the crops to contain the scheduled banks’ credit risk.The farmers are now able to take mortgage-free loan at maximum Tk 91.91 lakh to cultivate gerbera flower on five acres of land, but they will be able to take such loan at maximum Tk 3.06 lakh to plant the flower on 0.5 bigha of land when the central bank’s decision will be implemented.‘The farmers usually take the loan to mortgage their cultivated crops with the banks. But, such type of mortgage do not reduce the banks’ creditrisk resulting that the central bankhas made the decision to reducethe limit of mortgage-free loan’, he said.The BB will attach the decision with its agriculture and rural loan policy for the FY15 which will be announced at the third week of July, the central banker said.Mortgage-free loan amount for the cultivation of mushroom seeds and mushroom will be brought down to between Tk 1.30 lakh and Tk 1.85 lakh depending on the cultivation area from Tk 5.83 lakh-Tk 55.70 lakh.For the cultivation of mangoes, the mortgage-free loan amount will be Tk 1.36 lakh from existing Tk 5.83 lakh, those of banana to Tk 1.50 lakh from existing Tk 4.51 lakh, those of malta to Tk 1.41 lakh from existing Tk 2.01 lakh and those of potatoes to Tk 1.50 lakh from existing Tk 1.50 lakh.For the cultivation of rose, the mortgage-free loan amount will be Tk 1.80 lakh from existing Tk 26.96 lakh, those of gladiolus flower to Tk 1.72 lakh from existing Tk 17.24 lakh, and those of night-queen to Tk 1.47 lakh from existing Tk 4.91 lakh.Mortgage-free loan amount for the cultivation of betel leaf will be brought down to Tk 1.32 lakh from existing Tk 19.87 lakh, those of garlic to Tk 1.28 lakh from existing Tk 2.57 lakh, and those of ginger to Tk 1.36 lakh from existing Tk 4.55 lakh.For cultivation of turmeric, the mortgage free loan amount will be Tk 1.38 lakh from existing Tk 5.22 lakh, those of seeds of onions to Tk 1.36 lakh from existing Tk 4.55 lakh and those of papaya to Tk 1.43 lakh from existing Tk 5.37 lakh.For the cultivation of pineapple the mortgage-free loan amount will be Tk 1.32 lakh from existing Tk 2.65 lakh, those of orange for new garden to Tk 1.14 from existing Tk 2.29 lakh, those of orange for old garden to Tk 1.48 lakh from existing Tk 2.96 lakh.For the cultivation of litchi mortgage-free loan amount will be brought down to Tk 1.54 lakh from existingTk 3.09 lakh, those of honey cultivation to Tk 1.27 lakh from existingTk 9.58 lakh and those of guava toTk 1.28 lakh from existing Tk 2.56 lakh.Mortgage-free loan amount for the cultivation of lotkon will be brought down to Tk 1.14 lakh from existing Tk 2.29 lakh and those of incense stick to Tk 1.39 lakh from existing Tk 2.78 lakh.