Nov. 8, 2009 (The Hindu Business Line) --
Our Bureau
Kolkata, Nov. 8
The availability of institutional credit for farmers is vital and banks and financial institutions, therefore, should take the initiative to expand farm credit activities, said Mr Sanjeev Chopra, Secretary, Department of Agriculture, Government of West Bengal.
There are close to 57 lakh small and marginal farm holdings in West Bengal but only 18-19 lakh farmers hold Kisan Credit Card (KCC).
“Moreover, farmers are not making use of the available institutional credit,” Mr Chopra said while speaking here on Saturday at a panel discussion at the three-day Agro Protech Expo and 2E Agri-business Summit organised by the Indian Chamber of Commerce in collaboration with the State Government.
Financial institutions should take the responsibility and ensure that the available financial products reached the panchayat level to enable farmers to access the benefits of institutional credit, he said.
Food security
Ensuring food security and rural development was the main theme of the panel discussion on the final day of the summit, which was chaired by Mr Chopra.
Earlier, speaking at the inaugural session of the summit, Mr Naren De, West Bengal Agriculture Minister, said, “Ensuring food security should receive top priority and the country should take a comprehensive strategy to achieve four to five per cent growth in the agriculture sector in the short to medium term. Hybrid, high-yielding seeds and modern technology must reach the farmers.”
Mr Shyamal Banerjee, Vice President, Axis Bank; Mr Kumar Ashish, General Manager and Group Business Head, Rural Banking, ICICI Bank (NYSE:IBN) ; Mr R.K. Mohanty, General Manager, United Bank of India; Mr S.K. Mukherjee, General Manager, State Bank of India; Mr R.K. Thanvi, Assistant General Manager, Nabard; and Mr Satyabrata Mukherjee, Chief Executive Officer, Ambrosia, were among the panel members at the session, according to a press statement issued by ICC.
Joint liability groups
Nabard, West Bengal, has introduced financing scheme through the formation of joint liability groups (JLG) for small and marginal farmers, tenant farmers, oral lessees and share croppers, Mr Thanvi said.
The scheme would enable farmers to form a group and access credit for agriculture and allied activities. Funding the farmers through joint liability groups (JLG) would help banks reduce the risk of default, he observed.
The three-day mega conference-cum-exhibition attracted about 200 exhibitors from across the country. Close to 6,000 farmers from West Bengal, Bihar, North-Eastern States, Gujarat, Rajasthan and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands attended the summit, the release said.
