ITANAGAR, 29 Sep: Animal Husbandry, Veterinary & Dairy Development Commissioner Bidol Tayeng has written to the union fisheries & aquaculture development ministry’s animal husbandry & dairying department, informing that the state government is facing difficulties in implementing “the EDP scheme under the National Livestock Mission (NLM).”
“A total of 180 applications were received for taking up various livestock farming schemes across the state under the EDP till date, but, out of the 180, a total of 61 applications were received by the bank after due scrutiny by the SIA,” Tayeng said in the letter.
“All these applications are pending with different branches of the SBI across Arunachal Pradesh, and despite several approaches to the banks concerned on various platforms, the banks have refused to entertain such applications, citing that they are not aware of such scheme of the government of India,” Tayeng said, and added that “all necessary guidelines and correspondence were
also shared with the banks, despite which the banks are not interested to support farmers.”
He requested the ministry to look into the matter “and pass specific direction to the bank authorities concerned to support the EDP scheme under the NLM.”
Meanwhile, the Arunachal Pradesh Poultry and Fish Farmers Federation in a representation to the union MoS for animal husbandry, fisheries & dairying complained that “the lender banks are not taking initiatives despite the ministry’s direction to disburse the amount of the project” under the NLM.
Expressing appreciation for the central government for implementing the NLM, the federation said that, while its members have met the criteria “and the state NLM nodal officer has conducted all procedures and found correct and feasible as per NLM guideline, the lender banks are not taking initiatives despite the ministry’s direction to disburse the amount of the project.”
The federation alleged that “the banks are making excuses like market not viable, customer has not approached the bank, project not viable, no insurance coverage for the asset, etc.” It added that the banks are “unnecessarily giving harassment to the general public by wasting time, energy, and finance,” and sought the minister’s intervention into the matter.
