National Bank For Agriculture And Rural Development Research Articles

Agrarian Distress in Indian Agriculture: Causes, Socio-economic Consequences and Coping Strategies

Agrarian distress is the economic, political and social challenges faced by the farmers and rural communities due to factors such as low crop yields, fluctuating prices of agricultural produce, high input costs, indebtedness, and lack of access to credit, markets, and infrastructure. Over 8,00,000 individuals are dies by suicide each year because of various reasons. More over the suicides are happening in the families whose own land is less than 1-2 hectares, who are in debt, have been identified the most at risk for suicide. The present article aims at better understanding of the causes, consequences and possible coping strategies for the agrarian distress in India. Causes such as fluctuations in crop sales, weather and climate conditions, dependent on natural resources, etc. are discussed in detail. Consequences of agrarian stress are suicides of farmers, rural migration, food insecurity, environmental impacts and so on. Solutions such as strengthening the forward markets, comprehensive crop insurance schemes for the framers where the non-MSP (Minimum Support Price) crops also may be covered, assured price to the farmers are discussed. Many researchers argued that farmers suicides are increasing but the research is limited in the specialised area of interest. In addition to that, researchers are focussing only on the socio-economic variables rather than the psychological variables. In order to mitigate the risks out of agrarian distress, farmers should be encouraged by the government and extension service providers to take up the subsidiary occupations and secondary agricultural occupations which helps them in getting profits in the situations where the crop damages due to the extreme weather patterns. As rightly pointed out by National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD), distress of the framers should have a long-term potential solution such as major reforms in the existing agricultural laws rather than farm loan waivers which acts as the short-term relief to the farmers.

A Study on Agricultural Loans offered by NABARD to Farmers

This study delves into the comprehensive landscape of agricultural loans disbursed by the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) to farmers in India. The research scrutinizes the varied purposes for which these loans are extended, encompassing crop cultivation, animal husbandry, dairy farming, poultry, fisheries, and agro-processing. Emphasizing the different loan types – short-term, medium-term, and long-term – the investigation explores the interest rates associated with each category and evaluates the role of government subsidies in enhancing affordability. Additionally, the study investigates the credit delivery mechanism facilitated by NABARD through cooperative banks, regional rural banks, and commercial banks, ensuring an inclusive approach to reach farmers across diverse strata. The research underscores the technological impetus provided by NABARD, encouraging farmers to adopt modern agricultural practices and technologies. Special attention is given to risk mitigation measures, including crop insurance, designed to shield farmers from losses arising due to unforeseen circumstances. Keywords: NABARD, Agricultural Loans, Farmer Financing, Credit Delivery, Government Subsidies, Rural Development, Risk Mitigation, Financial Inclusion, Technological Adoption, Indian Agriculture.

Farmer Producer Organisations in Aquaculture-Prospects and Potentials

Farmer Producer Organisation (FPO) is a registered body with farmers and producers as shareholders in the organisation. It deals with business activities related to the farm produce and it works for the benefit of the member producers. It focuses on enhancement of farmer’s capacity through advanced agricultural practices to increase productivity. FPO facilitates access to fair and remunerative markets including linking of producer groups to marketing opportunities through market aggregators. It undertakes many activities starting from procurement of inputs to disposal of produce and acts as a bridge between production and marketing. Government of India is promoting FPOs by mobilizing the farmers and helping them in registering as companies through Small Farmers’ Agribusiness Consortium (SFAC) and National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD). Presently, around 7,374 FPOs are in existence in the country. In order to boost farmers’ income in fishery sector, ICAR-CIFA, Bhubaneswar facilitated formation of Bhargabi fish farmers Producers Company limited in Balipatna block as a part of Farmer FIRST project. This company was incorporated on 27th March 2019 with an authorized capital of Rs. 10 Lakh. Technical back up and training were provided to the members about scientific fish culture practices. The article discusses prospects and potentials of FPOs in aquaculture and suggests measures for its replication.

Beyond the Number Games: Understanding the Farmer Producer Companies in India and the Way Forward

The paper analyses the trends, patterns and performance of Farmer Producer Companies (FPCs) in India. The paper aims at understanding what determines the success of FPCs and also explore whether the current policy focus on a targeted development of 10,000 Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs) a good idea. The study tries to identify the critical common factors of successful FPC ventures. The study also analyses the issues, challenges and bottlenecks faced by selected FPCs and attempts to understand the best practices, the interventions and alternatives of the selected FPCs. The paper would help in understanding the existing and expected institutional arrangements for and around FPCs in order to make the business ventures robust. We used data provided by National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) and Small Farmers’ Agri-Business Consortium (SFAC) to explore the trends and patterns. A cross-case analysis was done to assess the performance and to draw inferences on critical common factors for success. The study shows that FPCs are emerging among other legal forms of FPOs. They are prominent in few states, which have enabling environment, enterprising farmers and have a history of collective action. The study shows heterogeneity in the product, functioning, how they work, deal with the issues and mechanisms of FPCs. The paper proposes establishing ‘incubators’ to handhold and support FPCs and different modes and categories for financing them. The macro- and micro-level understanding of FPCs drawn on the country-level data and the specific cases would add to the existing knowledge around FPCs in India. The contextual analysis of FPCs is of interest to global researchers and agri-development professionals, to identify the sectoral challenges, bottlenecks and the issues, which FPCs experience as business ventures. The paper creates possibilities for policy makers to design effective policy responses and strategies to strengthen FPCs in India and also benefit the global south by suggesting the learning from the model.

Socio-psychological Constructs and Perceived Economic Variables on Entrepreneurial Behavior among Farmer Producer Organization Members in Kerala: A Comprehensive Analysis

In the realm of the Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs), there is a compelling need for comprehensive scholarly investigation to assess the quantitative relationship between profile characteristics and entrepreneurial behavior of members within Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs) to address the existing knowledge gap and contribute to a deeper understanding of the dynamics that enhance livelihood security. Therefore, the present study focused on examining the relationship between the entrepreneurial behaviour of FPO members and their socio-psychological constructs and perceived economic variables. The study was conducted in Kerala. Districts from Northern, Central, and Southern Kerala having the maximum number of FPOs were selected for the study. Thus, Wayanad from Northern Kerala, Idukki from Central Kerala, and Trivandrum from Southern Kerala were selected for the study. A purposive sampling technique was used for the selection of the FPOs. Two functioning FPOs were purposively selected from the three districts based on discussion with National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD), Small Farmers Agribusiness Consortium (SFAC), and Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK). From each selected FPO, 20 farmer members were randomly selected. A total of 40 farmers were surveyed from each district. Thus, a total of 120 farmer members were selected from six Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs) located in three districts, resulting in a sample size of 120 respondents. A random sampling technique was used for the selection of the farmer members from each FPOs. Karl Pearson Correlation Coefficient was used in the study to understand the strength and direction of the relationship between the variables. The socio-psychological constructs and perceived economic variables were age, education, annual income, scientific orientation, number of training attended, social participation, group cohesion and credit orientation. The findings demonstrated that there were positive and significant relationships between education, annual income, training, scientific orientation, group cohesion, and creativity with entrepreneurial behavior. The variables age and credit orientation exhibited non-significant correlation coefficients, suggesting no significant relationship with entrepreneurial behavior.

Entrepreneurial Behaviour of Farmer Producer Organization Members: An Empirical Investigation

In the context of Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs), there is an imperative requirement for meticulous scholarly inquiry in the field of entrepreneurship due to the knowledge gap in comprehensive understanding of the psychological methodologies for quantitatively assessing entrepreneurship. Therefore, this research paper aims to assess the entrepreneurial behavior of FPO members, aiming to contribute to the existing body of knowledge in this field. An ex-post facto research design was used in the study. The study was conducted in Kerala. Districts from Northern, Central, and Southern Kerala having the maximum number of FPOs were selected for the study. Wayanad from Northern Kerala, Idukki from Central Kerala, and Trivandrum from Southern Kerala were purposively selected for the study. Purposive sampling technique was used for the selection of the FPOs based on discussion with National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD), Small Farmers Agribusiness Consortium (SFAC), and Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK). Two functioning FPOs were purposively selected from the three districts From each selected FPO, 20 farmer members were randomly selected. A total of 40 farmers were surveyed from each district. Thus, from six FPOs in three districts 120 farmer members were selected. Random sampling technique was used for the selection of the farmer members from each FPOs. Entrepreneurial behaviour was measured using Entrepreneurial Behaviour Index. The assessment of various dimensions of entrepreneurial behaviour such as risk taking, hope of success, persuasibility, feedback usage, persistence, self-confidence, knowledgeability, manageability, innovativeness and achievement motivation helped to gain a deeper understanding of the entrepreneurial characteristics within the FPO community. The findings of this study indicate that the majority of FPO members exhibit moderate levels of entrepreneurial behavior across different dimensions. Majority of the FPO members belonged to medium level of as risk taking, hope of success, persuasibility, feedback usage, persistence, self-confidence, knowledgeability, manageability, innovativeness and achievement motivation. This suggests that FPO members possess a balanced blend of entrepreneurial traits, demonstrating a proactive and enterprising approach towards their agricultural activities.

Socio- psychological Constructs and Perceived Economic Variables Impacting the Farmer Producer Organization members in Kerala: A Quantitative Analysis

The present study focused on assessing the socio-psychological constructs and perceived economic variables affecting the functioning of the FPOs. An ex-post facto research design was used in the study. The study was conducted in Kerala. Districts from Northern, Central, and Southern Kerala having the maximum number of FPOs were selected for the study. Wayanad from Northern Kerala, Idukki from Central Kerala, and Trivandrum from Southern Kerala were purposively selected for the study. A purposive sampling technique was used for the selection of the FPOs. Two functioning FPOs were purposively selected from the three districts based on discussion with National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD), Small Farmers Agribusiness Consortium (SFAC), and Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK). From each selected FPO, 20 farmer members were randomly selected. A total of 40 farmers were surveyed from each district. Thus, from six FPOs in three districts, 120 farmer members were selected. A random sampling technique was used for the selection of the farmer members from each FPOs. The study rigorously examined parameters such as age, education, annual income, scientific orientation, training attended, credit orientation, social participation, group cohesiveness, and creativity levels among FPO members. It was observed that FPOs comprised middle-aged farmers who completed their education up to the high school level. A substantial proportion of FPO members fell within the medium income category, scientific orientation, and have attended relatively fewer training sessions. Additionally, the research unveiled the fact that the majority of the FPO members belonged to a medium level of credit orientation, social participation, group cohesiveness, and creativity among FPO members. These factors play a critical role in shaping the dynamics and effectiveness of FPOs.

Self help groups, microfinance, financial inclusion and social exclusion: Insight from Assam

In order to link the unorganised with the formal financial sector in India, the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) introduced the Self-Help Group Bank Linkage Programme (SHG-BLP) as a trial initiative in 1992 and mainstreamed it in 1996. Microfinance services are available in Assam through SHG-BLPs registered with the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM). In central Assam, there are the most active SHG-BLP units. In light of this, the present study aims to explore contribution of SHG-BLP in financial along with the social inclusion of the marginalised rural people of central Assam. The impact of SHG-BLP is facilitated by the application of the propensity score matching method. The empirical results show that the SHG-BLP considerably reduces social exclusion among participants relative to their non-participant counterparts and ensures financial inclusion too. Based on this empirical finding, the study recommends that the coverage of SHG registration under DAY-NRLM be expanded. Simultaneously, efforts must be made to expand the alternative model of SHGs, the MFI-Bank Linkage Model, for expanding SHG coverage.

Progress and Performance of Agri-clinics and Agri-business Centres Scheme in India

Background: Agri-Clinics and Agri-Business Centres (AC and ABCs) is a scheme implemented by the Government of India in collaboration with the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) to provide assistance for the development of entrepreneurship in agriculture, creating employment opportunities for the unemployed agricultural graduates and also providing extension services to the farmers in rural areas. The present study is a modest attempt to evaluate the progress and performance of the Agri-Clinics and Agri-Business Centres scheme in India from its inception to the present day by looking at state-by-state, training institute-by-training institute and project-by-project results. Methods: The study is based on the contemporary analysis of secondary data gathered from books, magazines, newspapers, reports, Publications, Research Articles and official websites from 1st April 2002 to 31st December 2021. Furthermore, the researcher acquired knowledge from both published and unpublished thesis in order to make the study interesting and beneficial. Result: It is found from the analysis that Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Madhya Pradesh are the leading states in implementing the scheme successfully as compared to the Hilly States. A little attention is focused on hilly states in terms of training and establishing agriventures. Hence, the government should pay special attention to the hilly states and take suitable policy measures to meet the requirements of the farmers residing in Hilly areas and also on fulfilling the goals of the scheme.

A prospective study of various services utilization under the WADI project of NABARD by Tribal Women of Goalpara District

Purpose: The purpose of the Study is to evaluate challenges and opportunities of various services utilization under the WADI project of NABARD by Tribal Women of Goalpara in the prospective of study design.
 Theoretical Framework: There is a significant role of the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) in the socio-economic development of India in the perspective of the development of a sustainable development approach of livelihood for underprivileged people in the backward regions of India. In these consequences, a project of Wasteland Development in India (WADI) is a master plan NABARD for socio-economic development in the backward region of India, especially for promoting a sustainable development approach for scheduled tribes of India.
 Approach: The study is based on the review of related literature to study the various service utilisations under the WADI projects in the Goalpara district of Assam. For the purpose of the study various literatures, books, magazines, papers, newspapers and articles have been reviewed. Literature search revealed 121 articles or 99 abstracts, and citations showed 22 investigations. 39 publications did not meet the study's inclusion requirements, and 32 abstracts were rejected, 23 from non-English sources. 27 relevant peer-reviewed publications were chosen based on the inclusion criteria.
 Finding and social Implications: The findings of the study show that the implementation of master projects of NABARD is based according to the socio-economic and cultural practices of tribal communities in the Goalpara district of Assam because these tribes are inherited in their cultural landscape, and this cultural landscape represents their association with agroforestry. From these perspectives, it is found that the Goalpara district is the most backward region of Assam, where scheduled tribes account for the major proportion of the population of the district. Additionally, the role of NABARD is to promote and lead the mechanism of women empowerment through projects of WADI in the Goalpara district. However, it is also found that many challenges and problems emerged in the implementation of WADI projects due to the lack of transport and communication facilities in the Goalpara district of Assam.
 Originality/Value: In these consequences, it can be valued that NABARD is providing a sustainable approach to socio-economic development for scheduled tribes through the help of NGOs and organizations of the central government and state government of Assam. A depth analysis was conducted to understand the mechanism of role of the tribal community in the context of WADI projects of NABARD in the perspective of tribal abundant zone of Assam in India.

NABARD’s role in strengthening india through rural infrastructure development fund (RIDF)

Economic and social infrastructures are crucial for developing rural India. Even a marginal improvement, in a scenario of poor rural infrastructure, could significantly boost economic development and human wellbeing. The development of rural infrastructure by improving basic infrastructure, such as roads, electricity, housing, health and education, water and sanitation, etc. and infrastructure for agriculture sector like irrigation, warehouses, market yards, etc. can make a big difference in the standard of living. Development of rural infrastructure can lead to improved mobility in terms of better availability of inputs and raw materials and access to market centres for the rural producers. Development of strong and sustainable economic infrastructure has always been the priority of the central government of India. It is in this respect, the creation of Rural Infrastructure Development Fund (RIDF) was initiated by NABARD (National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development) in 1995-96 and by constructing Rural Infrastructure Indices (RIIs) in 2016, with the objective of providing low cost funds to the States to facilitate completion of the incomplete rural infrastructure projects and has emerged as a dependable source of public funding over the years.

Inherent problems in SHG formation in rural Punjab

The interface between the banks and the rural women oriented Self Help Groups in Punjab has been to assist the women, the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) is helping promotes the SHG Bank Linkage Programme which has facilitated the as well formation saving linkage of around 50,000 and credit linkage of 31,300 SHGs in Punjab. Women members of self help groups are being deterred by a series of problems that create hurdles in their attainment of success. The concept of SHGs in Punjab for women empowerment needs to evolve much more. Hence, efforts are required by members to prepare them to take decisions indecently and inculcate exemplary and sustainable leadership traits that would enable them to face various hurdles in their quest for obtaining financial inclusion as well as socio-economic empowerment

Performance Analysis of Self-help Groups in India

What makes the microfinance movement in India unique is the active involvement of formal financial institutions in providing essential financial services to the poor by establishing links with informal groups as clients. These institutions have supported the self-help group (SHG) programme,1 innovated and initiated by the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD), by providing microcredit to, and encouraging the habit of making small savings among, the financially deprived. The SHG scheme is not just a mechanism of financial intermediation but also a unique process of socio-economic engineering. The members of each SHG are given the opportunity to participate as equals in deciding the future course of action to achieve their desired objectives. Along with increasing financial access, the SHG movement also supports women empowerment and furthers other developmental goals related to education, health, family planning, and access to land and water.

Conceptualizing and Validating a Framework of Climate Smart Village in Flood Affected Ecosystem of West Bengal

Climate change is the major issue affecting the survival of human kind in the present day scenario. Farmers are the most vulnerable communities to these changes. Many climate smart technologies were devised and tried to promote through traditional extension system. But their adoption rate is very poor doe to multiple socio-economic and technological factors. Therefore focus extension approach were thought of and concept of climate smart village was introduced to promote climate smart technologies. But the past efforts on establishing climate smart villages were revolved around only on technological dimension ignoring socio-economic dimension of climate change. Hence, the present study conceptualizes the climate smart village integrating technological as well as social factors. The concept has been experimented during 2016-2021 at field level in the village Singimari, Jalpaiguri district of West Bengal in convergence mode with other related stakeholders line Krishi vigyan Kendra (KVK), state agricultural department, National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD), NGOs and farming communities. The findings revealed that adoption level of climate smart technologies and practices has increased significantly after establishment of climate smart village. Therefore, more number of climate smart villages should be established specially in vulnerable ecosystem for better adaptation to climate change.

National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD)

Indian economy is agricultural economy and real India lies in villages. Without the development of the rural economy, the objectives of economic planning cannot be achieved. Hence, banks and other financial institutions are considered to be a vital role for the development of the rural economy in India. NABARD are playing a pivotal role in the economy development of the rural India. In the Indian context rural development assumes greater significance as nearly 70% of its population lives in rural areas. Most of the people living in rural area draw their livelihood from agriculture and allied sectors. Such areas are distinct from more intensively settled urban and suburban areas. Life styles in rural area are different than those in urban areas, mainly because limited services are available. Governmental services like law enforcement, schools, fire departments may be distant, limited in scope, or unavailable. Rural development is a national necessity and has considerable importance in India. The main objective of the rural development programme is to raise the economic and social level of the rural people. National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) is set up as an apex institution by the Government of India with the main objective of providing and regulating credit and other facilities for the promotion of rural development. It is a single integrated organisation which looks after the credit requirements of all types of agricultural and rural development activities. The present study is a modest attempt to the credit potential for agriculture during the year 2021-22. The study covered aspects such as functions, objectives, management and organizational structure, sources of funds, activities achieved, loan assistance to various institutions, Methodology for preparation of potential linked credit plans (PLPs) and Development Projects in Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Keywords: NABARD, Rural Development, RBI and SHGs..

Barriers Faced by Agripreneurs in Starting and Operating Agriventures under ACABC Scheme: An Analysis

The ACABC (Agri Clinics and Agri Business Centres) scheme is being implemented by Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare, Government of India, with National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) (“NABARD-National Bank For Agriculture And Rural Development” n.d.) acting as subsidy channelizing agency and National Institute of Agricultural Extension Management (MANAGE) will be responsible for providing training to eligible candidates, through Nodal Training Institutes (NTIs) and motivating them for setting up of Agri-Clinics and Agri-Business Centres. Whereas the Nodal Training Institute (NTI) is desirous of undertaking to implement the training and handholding component of the said Scheme with MANAGE (“MoU-ACABC” n.d.). JNKVV, Jabalpur is a Nodal Training Institute (NTI) of MANAGE, Hyderabad for providing training on Agripreneurship under the Agri-Clinic and Agri. Business Centre scheme 2010 (www.agriclinics.net) of Govt. of India, Ministry of Agriculture, Department of Agriculture and Cooperation. (“Revised Guideline ACABC-2010” 2011). The present study was conducted in Jabalpur district of Madhya Pradesh state during 2014 to 2020 and based on the primary data collected through field survey by personal interaction, telephonic interaction, pre-tested questionnaires from 60 sample agri-graduates of NTI. Used statistical methods such as frequency, score and percentage to find this out the problems of agripreneurs in establishing and operating agriventures after successful completion of training programme. In the results, it was found that lack of own fund to start venture, status of confusion between job or entrepreneurship, lack of proper handholding support from NTIs, lack of family support, lack of business and field experience (Managerial and technical), high rate of interest on loan and a difficulty bank documentation process in getting bank loans were the major problems in establishing agriventure, while heavy competition from existing market players, marketing and infrastructural problems, perishability and seasonability of products, fluctuation in demand and prices of products, illiteracy and lack of knowledge of the farmers and insufficient working capital to run the business were the major problems faced by agripreneurs in operating agriventure (Lal et al. 2015). Thus, the present study mainly focused on the major problems faced by agripreneurs in starting and operation of agriventures under the agriclinic and agribusiness centre (ACABCs) scheme.

Growth Analysis of Joint Liability Groups (JLGs) in India - With Special Reference to Tamil Nadu

Joint Liability Groups (JLGs) has been a noteworthy developmental mechanism in microfinance group-lending model advancing towards uplifting materialistic collateral-less and unbanked poor society in the direction of self-sustainability through easing access to formal financial services with a proposal for self-employment which remained to be pursued as their dream for so long. The present study seeks to document expansionary trend in JLGs and to identify major benefits, constraints and suggestions of JLG member-beneficiaries with purview of supporting further development towards promoting and financing more JLGs in India.
 Aim: The present study attempts to document the trend in growth of JLGs supported by National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) in India and to identify major benefits, constraints and suggestions in functioning of JLGs through Bank-Business Corporate (BC) linkage model among its member-beneficiaries which would serve researchers and policy makers to arrive at appropriate measures to expedite advancement in expansion and magnification of trend of JLGs in India.
 Design of Study: The study employed secondary data from annual publication of NABARD “Status of Micro Finance in India” for 2011-12 to 2019-20 for JLG trend analysis. Following purposive sampling, 3 blocks of Namakkal district were studied during August 2021, purposively selecting Bank-Business Corporate (BC) linkage model and randomly selecting well-experienced 30 member-beneficiary groups.
 Methodology: The study adopted Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) for JLG trend analysis and Garrett’s ranking procedure to prioritize major benefits, constraints and suggestions of JLG members.
 Findings:
 
 Overall growth rate of India stands at 44.86% in terms of number of JLGs promoted and 60.73% in terms of quantum of JLG loan disbursed. Northern region excels growing at the rate of 62.53% in the former category while Western region exhibits expeditious rate of growth (75.19%) in the latter.
 Tamil Nadu leads the lane in terms of cumulative quantum of credit disbursed ranking second to Bihar in terms of cumulative number of JLGs promoted in India. Orissa manifests rapid growth among leading five states in both categories cumulatively.
 
 With women empowerment socially and economically, easy access to formal credit and better repayment as major benefits of JLG participation, hiking initial loan amount, aiding in identification of microenterprise, training and capacity building in related fields, introducing technological innovation on demand-side and linkage to product marketing and brand promotion on supply side were suggested areas of concern towards encouraging massive promotion of JLGs..

MEASURING THE EFFICIENCY IN LENDING OPERATIONS OF STATE CO-OPERATIVE BANKS IN INDIA

Co-operatives are member driven and democratic in nature and played a pioneering role in providing agricultural credit to a very large rural population, especially in remote areas. The State Co-operative Banks (SCBs) are the apex level co-operative credit institutions and play a significant role in the functioning and growth of the co-operative credit structure in the respective states. Financial assistance from Reserve Bank of India and National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) are mainly routed through the state co-operative banks and hence they have to ensure efficiency in their lending operations. The study has used the benchmarking technique DEA and revealed higher deviations in efficiency scores among state co-operative banks. The problems and challenges of SCBs differ from state to state. Hence in every state, the management and the regulating authorities should work on transforming the co-operative credit system into a viable and self- sustaining system by identifying and addressing their core inefficiencies.

WITHDRAWN: Identification of uniformity and trend of refinancing performance of NABARD

Abstract The aim of the article is to identify the refinancing performance of National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) for 35 years from 1983 to 2017. In India, NABARD has started its function since 1983 and established for the purpose of agriculture and rural developments. NABARD is providing refinance assistance for Minor Irrigation, Land Development, Form Mechanization and Plantation, Poultry, Fisheries, Dairy and IRDP/SGSY, Forestry, Storage, Market Yarts, Sheep Breeding/Piggery, NFS, Bio-Gas, SC/ST Action Plan, NSP III, Self Help Group, Rural Housing and Others. This research work is based on the secondary data which were published in the Annual Reports of NABARD from 1983 to 2017. The refinancing performance of NABARD has evaluated in terms of growth rate and uniformity in refinance disbursements. It was identified that even 35 years noteworthy refinance performance of NABARD; the steady growth rate of refinancing performance was identified in all the schemes except IRDP/SGSY are operated by NABARD. And also identify that there was no uniformity in size of refinance disbursement by NABARD between the overall periods of 35 years.

Emergence of Producer Companies as Innovative Institutions for Agriculture Development in India: Issues and Challenges

Small and marginal farmers encounter several challenges in managing their farms, the major being limited investment capacity, access to inputs, water, power, and credit. In India, the Ministry of Agriculture recognized the collectivization of these farmers into producer organizations (POs) as the most appropriate institutional form to leverage farmers’ production and marketing capacities. The study aims to understand the characteristics of producer companies (PCs) and identify the issues and challenges in the emergence of PCs through a quantitative study of all PCs registered in the country using secondary data and a qualitative study based on interviews with 192 PC directors, members, and 11 promoting institutions. The formation and development of PCs are being actively undertaken by government and their agencies with major financial support from the Small Farmers Agri-Business Consortium (SFAC) and the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD), with technical support from resource support agencies. A total of 7,381 PCs were registered by March 2019, across 33 states and union territories, and 2,749 PCs were active as of March 2018. PCs face numerous challenges, the major being shortage of investment and working capital, compliance-related problems, lack of vision and direction from the board and poor professional management. From the perspective of the producer organization promoting institutions or POPIs, the major issues were attitude of farmers, limited number of members, poor equity base, subsidy driven process, and non-result-oriented approach of the PCs.