Keeping micro credit flowing to fund rural dreams

Three agencies are interlinked in two districts of Madhya Pradesh to keep small credit flowing to villagers. While the villagers are getting grants under a World Bank scheme, an NGO Lupin Foundation is helping sustain the activities, started by the World Bank, through small credit. Lupin in turn is getting funds from the Rashtriya Mahila Kosh of the Central government to carry out its lending activities.

A farm-labourer in Chandoni Garhi village till last year, Parvat Singh is today growing Kufri potatoes, which are in great demand in the local market of Gairatganj tehsil in the Raisen district, Madhya Pradesh.

He was part of one of the five-member Village Development Committees (VDC) formed under the World Bank's District Poverty Initiative Project (DPIP). Each committee, formed around identified income-generating activities, has been getting a one-time grant of Rs 100,000 under DPIP's Rs 500-crore project. Singh made use of the Rs 20,000 grant to grow potatoes in his backyard.

Singh has no clue whom to ask in case he needs help in his new work. The Lupin Foundation, an NGO formed by the pharma company Lupin Lab Ltd, has stepped in to take care of the credit needs of the VDC members in the Vidisha and Raisen districts.

VDCs have been formed under DPIP in 14 districts of Madhya Pradesh. Villagers of Chandoni Garhi have also constructed a bridge on a nullah that connects them now to 15 other nearby villages with an investment of Rs 4.75 lakh against a government body estimate of Rs 9 lakh.

Two other villagers"" Raja Ram and Bala Prasad ""managed the funding of the bridge through the DPIP and convinced the members of their group Sangam Sammit Samooh to contribute their labour for the bridge construction. Villagers are expecting Lupin to help financially in future for the maintenance of the bridge.

"So far we have given loans worth Rs 1.25 crore for non-DPIP activities in 65 villages of Raisen and Vidisha district. We are working with VDCs and identifying projects for people so that we can fund them whenever they need," said SK Chugh, chief programme officer, Lupin Foundation.

While Lupin charges a rate of 12 per cent, it gets funds from the RMK at a rate of 8 per cent. Lupin Foundation is looking to arrange Rs 3 crore in days to come to activity groups and at least 3,000 families. It is working in 25 villages in the DPIP project area and is identifying the needy. "Our is the only corporate house which is engaged in this kind of non-profit social activity in Madhya Pradesh," said Chugh.

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