Maharashtra peasants aim high, seek loans for a 5-star hotel, copter!

Buldhana / Hingoli: With growing input costs and failing crops, Maharashtra farmers are now exploring alternative avenues to make some extra bucks and, maybe even become local richies.

This week, two marginal farmers have grabbed attention for propounding their ambitious yet bizarre ventures to attain prosperity.

They are Kailas Ramrao Patange, 22, of Taktoda village in Hingoli and Shuham Ingle, 30, of Changefal village in Buldhana, both predominantly farming regions that are hit by the current agrarian crisis gripping different parts of the state.

Ingle has applied for a Rs 11-crore loan - Rs 5.50 crore each from State Bank of India (SBI) and Bank of India (BoI) in Sangrampur - to construct dream high-rise five-star hotel on his small farm, while Patange has sought a Rs 6.65-crore loan from SBI, Goregam, to purchase his dream helicopter.

The duo has submitted their simple and direct loan applications in Marathi - Ingle's is typewritten, while Patange's is hand-scrawled - their respective bank branches managers, creating a flutter. Hailing from a family which has been tilling land for the past three generations, Ingle reasoned that despite toiling day-night in the fields, he has not been able to improve his and his family's lot since past 15 years.

"After working so hard for 20 hours daily, I am barely able to make ends meet, and can barely afford to provide more than the necessities of life to my family. Hence I thought of this plan to construct a five-star hotel on my farmland," said Ingle.

Similar was the refrain from Patange, who has been working on his 2-acre farm since the past over five years, but found little or no profits from agriculture.

"With my friend Chetan Sawke and advice from some others, we have decided to launch a helicopter rental service which is slowly growing in popularity," Patange told IANS.

The Ingle-Patange duo rued that despite complete dedication to their traditional vocation, they have been repeatedly hit by crop failures, vagrant weather conditions, high costs of raw materials and very low profits, compelling them to consider changing tracks to bring their life on the right track.

Patange said that he plans to hire out his helicopter to various rich individuals, corporations, weddings and other events, and repay his bank loan from the income. Ingle plans to make hay while the sun shines, and explained how "deluxe and five-star hotels are the haunts of politicians" which will garner huge profits and help him pay back the bank loan.