Kolkata, Jan 18 (PTI) National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development on Wednesday said it has projected a credit target of Rs 2.70 lakh crore for the priority sector lending in West Bengal in 2023-24 fiscal, which is 9.3 per cent higher than the previous year's estimate.
The bank had estimated Rs 2.47 lakh crore of credit potential under the priority sector lending in the state for the current financial year.
Of the total credit potential under the priority sector for 2023-24 fiscal, the share of agriculture, including agri-infrastructure and ancillary activities, is 39.54 per cent and that of MSME is 44.26 per cent, Nabard Chief General Manager Usha Ramesh said.
Noting that 'Duare Sarkar' (government at your doorsteps) scheme of the West Bengal government is one of the best programmes for enhancing financial outreach, she said the state authorities have taken a number of initiatives in recent past for fostering multi-dimensional growth in the state's economy.
"However, these initiatives have to be supplemented through adequate credit deployment and coordinated efforts of all the stakeholders for a faster and holistic development of West Bengal," Ramesh said.
She also stated that small-holding farmers representing 96 per cent of the total farming community in West Bengal are faced with challenges of low investment, poor productivity, inadequate post-harvest facilities and weak market orientation coupled with an adverse impact of climate change.
In this scenario, the collectivisation of agricultural produce through Farmers' Producer Organisations (FPOs) is imperative to leverage the economies of scale by conferring greater bargaining power, better market and price discovery, and access to credit and insurance.
She also emphasised agriculture term loans for capital formation in the sector.
"Agriculture term loan has to grow. I think there is a phenomenon across India where the stress is more on short-term loans rather than long-term advances. Through the Agriculture Infrastructure Fund, I hope there will be improvement in long-term agriculture loans," Ramesh said on the sidelines of a seminar.
In the Nabard-organised credit seminar, the 'State Focus Paper: 2023-24' along with 'Financial Inclusion Outreach in West Bengal 2022-23' was released.
West Bengal is one of the leading producers of rice, jute, tea, vegetables and fruits. Therefore, crop loan constitutes 64.28 per cent of the total agriculture credit and 25.42 per cent of the total priority sector credit potential, Nabard said in a statement.
Of the Rs 2.70 lakh crore credit potential for FY24, the share of self-help groups and joint liability groups (SHG-JLG) is 7.69 per cent, the housing sector 4.67 per cent, education loans 1.68 per cent, social infrastructure 1.07 per cent and the 1.09 per cent constitutes export credit and renewable energy.
The developmental bank prepares a potential-linked credit plan (PLP)annually for each district through a consultative process for planning and dispensation for priority sector activities.
Nabard in West Bengal is working towards strengthening rural financial institutions, which serve the farming community, the statement said.
The bank is also planning for telemedicine and smart education projects under the rural infrastructure promotion fund in Sundarbans, a UNESCO heritage site, in West Bengal, which is expected to launch by March this year, Ramesh said.
Some of the major initiatives, like the creation of an agriculture infrastructure fund, animal husbandry, dairy, fisheries infrastructure schemes, formalisation of micro food processing units, incentivising MSMEs, production of ethanol and renewal energy, could be strategically leveraged for accelerating growth in investment credit in the state, she added.
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