FM stresses on increasing agricultural credit

Union finance minister P Chidambaram on Monday reiterated the government's stand on increasing agricultural credit to farmers besides helping women self-help groups (SHGs) and students getting easier access to credit through various banks.

Speaking at a function organised by Andhra Bank to launch three new schemes, the finance minister said, "The government is committed to the welfare of the farmers. Nobody is more important to us than the welfare of the farmers who constitute 65 per cent of the working population in the country."

The finance minister said that the agricultural credit is expected to exceed the target of Rs 1,05,000 crore set by the government for the current financial year, an increase of 31.25 per cent over last year's Rs 80,000 crore.

He commended the efforts of the various banks in the state, which collectively have disbursed Rs 7,010 crore as agricultural credit so far this year. According to Chidambaram, of the 10 crore farmer families in India, only four crore have access to agricultural credit from banks or co-operative societies, while the rest had to depend on moneylenders.

"This year we will be adding 50 lakh farmer families to the agricultural credit system. We hope to exceed this target as well. Our intention is to give all farmer families in the country access to agricultural credit through various banks and co-operative societies," he said.

Chidambaram also said that women SHGs would get top priority from the government. "So far 10,80,000 SHGs have been provided loans and this year we expect add another 1,80,000 SHGs," he said.

According to him, the repayment rate of the SHGs was 98 per cent and the government believes that they should be independent. "I have nothing against men, but I am willing to put my faith in women," Chidambaram added.

Chidambaram also said that all banks have been instructed to advance educational loans to students who want to get admission into professional courses.

"Any student who gets admitted to a professional course should be able to get a loan based on his admission card without any collateral," he said.

"I will also start touring various places in the state to see whether the various banks are meeting the necessary requirements as prescribed by the government. I have visited few states in this regard and will extend it to Andhra Pradesh shortly," Chidambaram said.