To improve the flow of credit to industrial clusters and facilitate their all round development, 15 banks operating in Orissa including the public sector State Bank of India (SBI) and the Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) have adopted 48 clusters.
These clusters are in the sectors like engineering tools, foundry, handloom, food processing, weaving, rice mill, cashew processing, pharmaceuticals, bell metals and carpentry among others.
While SBI has adopted 7 clusters, highest among all the banks, SIDBI, Allahabad Bank and Utkal Gramya Bank have adopted 5 clusters each. Andhra Bank, Punjab National Bank (PNB), United Bank of India and Bank of Baroda have adopted 4 clusters each, officials sources said.
SBI has adopted brass and bell metal clusters ( in Rengali, Balakati, Baidyarajpur and Jajpur town), weaving (Siminai), rice mill (Kalahandi and Nuapara), handloom cluster (Nuapatna and Rajsunakhala), Opera dress (Haripur hat and Jajpur town), palm leaf art work and silver filigree works ( Danda sahi and Raghurajpur).
Similarly, SIDBI has adopted foundry and machinery cluster (Khurda), pharmaceuticals (Cuttack and Bhubaneswar), appliqué (Pipli), handloom and stone carving (Khurda). Public sector Punjab National Bank (PNB) has adopted engineering cluster (Cuttack), plastic and polymer cluster (Balasore and the adjoining areas), foundry (Rourkela) and food processing (Khurda).
While Uco Bank has adopted the engineering and tools cluster (Bhubaneswar and the adjoining areas) and Handloom clusters located at Baragarh, Dhenkanal and Athamallik, Bank of India has adopted pharmaceutical clusters at Bhubaneswar and Cuttack. Bank of Baroda has adopted clusters at Rourkela (foundry), Angul (aluminium), Berhampur (automobile) and Sambalpur (brass and bell metal).
Similarly, United Bank of India has adopted cashew processing cluster (Ganjam), rice mill (Balasore, Sundergarh, Baragarh and Sambalpur), handloom (Nuapatna in Cuttack district) and engineering cluster at Rourkela.
Sources said, Andhra Bank has adopted the pharmaceutical cluster (in Bhubaneswar and Cuttack), cashew processing (Koraput and Ganjam), kewda processing (Ganjam district), rice mill (Baragarh, Sambalpur, Bolangir and Bhawanipatna) and ayurvedic medicine cluster in Ganjam district.
Besides, Utkal Gramya Bank has adopted small retail trade clusters (in Sundergarh, Jharsuguda, Sambalpur,Baragarh, Bolangir, Kalahandi, Nuapada, Phulbank, Nawarangpur and Koraput), bell metal (Sonepur), bio-sourcing (Baliguda) and Handloom cluster (Baripada).
