Kisan credit cards missing target

Only 40 per cent farmers have been distributed KCCs

Private and public sector banks have failed to make a success of the kisan credit card scheme (KCC) launched in 1998-99. Formulated by the National Bank for Rural and Agriculture Development (NABARD), the scheme aimed at providing farmers the facility of purchasing agricultural inputs such as seeds, fertilisers, pesticides etc. on the basis of their land holding.

The limit of Kisan credit is fixed on the basis of operational land holding, cropping pattern and scale of finance.

Only 40 per cent of the total 65 lakh farmers have been distributed KCCs in the state against the target of covering all farmers by March 31, 2004. Except for Bank of Rajasthan no private bank has issued any Kisan Credit Card to farmers. Similarly, Andhra Bank, Corporation Bank, United Bank of India and Vijaya Bank have also issued no cards to the farmers.

Only a few banks from the State Bank group have also issued no cards to the farmers against the total issuance of the group of 71,419 cards with a credit limit of Rs 515.66 crore and disbursement of Rs 48.06 crore (as on December 31, 2005).

Commercial banks have issued only 180,754 kisan credit cards of the 417,323 kisan credit cards issued by all banks. The regional rural banks have issued 63,002 credit cards and co-operative banks have issued 173,567 cards.

The major problem in Madhya Pradesh is that the co-operative banks, which have issued kisan credit cards are facing financial problems and sponsor banks of the co-operative banks and the state government have taken no effective step to improve their financial health.

Commercial bankers have urged the department of agriculture to provide block-wise list of number of farmers and cards issued to them so that the rest of the farmers can be covered but bankers are not interested in making any data on farmers. "Commercial banks have their limitations, their reach is limited," said RS Tripathi, co-ordinator of state-level bankers committee.

However, banking sources said, "A banker does not run the risk. Further Core Banking Solution to connect all branches has put a burden on banks instead of reducing their working hours. Thus they do not find time to deal with farmers even in specialised agriculture branches."

Although the state government has assured the bankers to collect data from district collectors and panchayat chief executive officers, alternatively revenue department or rural department may provide names of farmers to the bankers.