Asim promises Rs 3,000 crore for SMEs

The small and medium scale enterprises (SME) of the state have a reason to cheer: the state government has promised to disburse Rs 3,000 crore to the sector in the current financial year.

"Although the credit disbursement for the SME sector has increased by nearly 33 percent from Rs 1,138 crore in 2005-06 to Rs 1,513 crore in 2006-07, it has been considered essential to increase the disbursement to the assessed minimum annual requirement of credit of Rs 3,000 crore in the current year 2007-08," said Asim Das Gupta, Finance Minister of West Bengal.

The credit disbursement to the sector in first quarter of the current fiscal grew by 45 percent, he added.

Addressing 100th State Level Banking Committee meeting, Das Gupta told, "The credit disbursement for the agricultural and allied sector has increased by 21 percent in 2006-07 to Rs 3,580 crore and the target for the current year has been fixed at Rs 5,000 crore, with half of the amount are ensured for the small and marginal farmers."

He added, "This would cover at least 1 lakh of patta holders and 1 lakh of registered share croppers".

However he admitted that the annual credit requirement for the sector has been assessed to be around Rs 10,000 crore.

Meanwhile the minister has also called for Universal Financial Inclusion (100 percent of Financial Inclusion) in the state by the end of the eleventh plan period.

"There must be at least one bank account in every household of the stated and such universal coverage has been already achieved in the Hoogly district," he added.

During the last financial year the credit deposit ratio in the state has increased by 6 percent to reach 66 percent and the loan recovery ratio has increased by 10 percent to 68 percent in the same period, ending in March 2007.

The minister called for a join effort from the banks and the government to achieve 71 percent in credit deposit ratio and 73 percent in recovery rate in year 2007-08.