Banks achieve farm credit target in East Godavari

Credit to agriculture touched Rs 2,284.09 crore by March 2007.

Banks in East Godavari district have surpassed the credit disbursement target set by the Centre to the farm sector. The banks had been advised by the Centre to double the credit flow to agriculture in three years starting from 2004.

As on March 31, 2004, credit to agriculture stood at Rs 823 crore and the same touched the Rs 2,284.09-crore mark by March 31, 2007. The increase is more than two-and-a-half times.

The target for kharif 2007 was Rs 750 crore while banks disbursed Rs 755 crore. In the rabi season, of the Rs 358 crore target, the banks have so far disbursed Rs 198 crore.

"We would exceed the rabi target too by the end of the season. Bankers are showing keen interest in helping more farmers for their agriculture development activities by sanctioning loans to them," said lead bank district manager A Shanmukhachari.

During 2007-08, banks covered 18,035 new farmers in the district, as against 22,300 farmers "� the target set by the Andhra Pradesh government. Of these, 11,358 new farmers were covered during the kharif season and 6,677 farmers in the rabi season. The banks are hopeful of covering the remaining farmers during the Rabi season.

Shanmukhachari said 6,31,930 farmers were brought under the Kisan Credit Card (KCC) scheme by the banks. The KCC holders enjoy personal accident coverage of Rs 50,000 as against a payment of a nominal premium of Rs 5. The balance premium, ie Rs 10, is borne by the banks.

Of the targeted 7,467 rythu mitra groups (farmer-friendly groups), as many as 4,855 RMGs received finance from banks, which stood at Rs 54.98 crore.

However, Shanmukhachari said, "Banks need to provide more funding to RMGs for technical upgradation so that they can take up activities like vermi-composting, manufacture of bio-pesticides marketing of fertilisers, and pesticides, as these activities have not taken pace in the district with the expected acceleration."

Andhra Bank and State Bank of India stood first and second respectively in releasing advances to the agriculture sector.