Badal calls upon banks to play leading role in the promotion of agriculture diversification programme in Punjab

Chandigarh, August 13, 2013: The Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal today called upon the bankers to play a pro-active role in the state’s mission for the promotion of diversification of Agriculture in a big way to change the destiny of the peasantry and put the agrarian economy on strong footing.

Presiding over a 125th meeting of State Level Bankers Committee (Punjab) convened here by the Punjab National Bank at Hotel Shivalik View, Badal emphasised the need to enhance the credit flow to agriculture sector for giving impetus to the much needed crop diversification program. He bemoaned that direct agriculture advances have declined from 20.08% to 17.81% and this trend must be reversed without any further delay to encourage the farmers towards diversification.

Showing concern over the low credit deposit ratio of 63% of rural sector against the overall ratio of 80% in the state, Badal impressed upon the bankers to make concerted efforts to raise this ratio considerably as it was 124% and 112% in Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh respectively. Likewise, the Chief Minister also pleaded to enhance the rate of advances to SC beneficiaries and other unprivileged sections of the society. He mentioned though there was spurt in the deposits, the credit to deserving sections of society was consistently on decline. Citing an example, Mr. Badal pointed out that advances to SC beneficiaries had been declined from 44.4% in June, 2011 to 13.75% in June, 2013.

Badal also solicited bankers’ cooperation in the state government’s initiative for setting up of Rural Self-Employment Training Institutes (RSETIs) to enable the unemployed youth to start their self-ventures. He said the state government had already offered half to 1.25 acres land in 20 districts for these RSETIs. He asked the bankers to finance the ventures of the trainees from these RSETIs liberally in a prompt and hassle-free manner.

On the issue of financing the self-help groups, the Chief Minister said that 28556 such groups have been formed till June, 2013 of which 19,667 groups have been financed adding Mr. Badal said that there was a huge potential for generating employment by setting up and financing more such self-help groups and asked the Deputy Commissioners to assist in identifying such groups. He also revealed that the state government has launched the scheme for disbursement of old age pension electronically to beneficiaries at their door steps in Ludhiana, Sri Muktsar Sahib, Fazilka and Mansa districts on the pattern of ‘One District-One Bank’ model and remaining districts would also be covered soon.

Earlier, the Regional Director RBI Chandigarh MK Singh appreciated the performance of Punjab in the achieving the annual credit plan adding he said the state had performed extremely well in the priority sector but still lot was to be done.

On the occasion, Field General Manager of Punjab National Bank Harpal Singh in his address welcomed the Chief Minister and highlighted the significant achievements of the state government.

Prominent amongst others who attended the meeting included Principal Secretary to the Chief Minister SK Sandhu, Secretary Expenditure Jaspal Singh, Director-cum-Secretary Industries & Commerce Vikas Partap Singh, Registrar Cooperatives AS Miglani,     General Manager NABARD Rakesh Gupta, Executive Director PNB Rakesh Sethi besides several senior officers of the state government and banks.