ITANAGAR, Dec 22: Representatives from different banks, Krishi Vigyan Kendras and NGOs, along with officials from line departments, progressive farmers, and entrepreneurs participated in a ‘state credit seminar’ organised by the regional office of the NABARD at the Banquet Hall here on Friday.
Starting the seminar, which was inaugurated by Agriculture Minister Wangki Lowang, NABARD GM, Dr Gyanendra Mani, informed that the theme of the NABARD’s State Focus Paper for the year 2018-’19 is ‘Water conservation – per drop more crop.’
“The NABARD has been estimating sector-wise exploitable potentials for ground-level credit flow from financial institutions to different priority sector activities for all the districts, and the same is aggregated at the state level,” he said.
Mani informed that the NABARD has assessed a credit potential of Rs 617.48 crore for 2018-’19, which is about 3.4 per cent higher over the previous year’s figure of Rs 597.46 crore.
He expressed hope that the State Focus Paper would provide the right direction to the policy planners and other stakeholders “in helping banks to direct smooth flow of institutional credit for doubling of farmers’ income by 2022, as envisioned by the Centre.”
He also outlined the NABARD’s role in increased assistance to the state government for creating better rural infrastructure, deepening SHG-bank linkage movement, and its increased role in the digital movement through financial inclusion to reach the unreached.
Lowang unveiled the State Focus Paper 2018-’19 and the Area Development Scheme 2018-’23 prepared by the NABARD.
“The people would be immensely benefited if the success stories of the NABARD’s interventions and other important research findings of the CHF, Pasighat, discussed during the seminar are video-recorded and made available for wider circulation,” Lowang said.
He lamented, however, that people-centric schemes are not reaching the last mile, and urged the NABARD and the bankers to increase funding in the state’s agriculture sector, “especially to lay link roads connecting various agriculture and horticulture fields.”
Lowang informed that the Agriculture department is contemplating supplying machineries to selected farmers “as subsidy-oriented schemes have failed to show the desired results.”
He also urged the NABARD to help in providing mini-dryers to large cardamom farmers in the state, as they lack proper drying facilities, besides access to markets.
The minister informed that his department has earmarked Rs 10 crore for increasing the area under terrace cultivation in the state. He outlined the importance of fisheries and livestock activities in improving sustainable livelihood.
The minister also flagged off the mobile ‘demo van’ of the Apex Bank, supported by the NABARD from its financial inclusion fund.
Industries Parliamentary Secretary, Karya Bagang, expressed gratitude to the NABARD for its cooperation in increasing the ground-level credit flow to different sectors of the state’s economy.
She underlined the importance of the CM’s flagship programmes, and urged the bankers to simplify the process for accessing bank credit. She informed that her department is taking all the required initiatives to cover maximum number of youths through skill development programmes.
SBI DGM, TK Dhar, reiterated his bank’s stance to provide maximum credit under the priority sector. However, he underlined the importance of “improving the recovery climate in the state, which currently hinders the flow of credit as the banks do not have confidence in doling out agricultural loans.”
NABARD DGM, V Thirumalai, made a PowerPoint presentation on the State Focus Paper, 2018-’19, while Apex Bank MD, T Thongdok, made a presentation on the role of the Apex Bank in financial inclusion.
Dean of Pasighat-based College of Horticulture & Forestry (CHF), AK Pandey, made a presentation on the importance of horticulture for the state’s economy.
RBI AGM, A Sinha, also spoke.
