Saying that India has 39.4 crore acre of land which, if fully irrigated, could produce enough food grains not only for India but also for the world, Amit Shah, Union Cooperation Minister exhorted ARDBs to enhance long term credit flow.
While we are 7th globally in terms of availability of cultivable land, we are number 2 after the USA in terms of agricultural activities. We need to focus on creating farm infrastructure for boosting farm outputs, said Shah.
“Join hands with DCCBs or even PACS, help form co-ops to tackle small land-holdings and remove all hurdles that come in the way of disbursing more and more credit to rural areas” Shah sounded impatient with the slow growth of the sector.
He named micro irrigation and co-operative farming as the twin goals ARDBs should keep in mind. Either liquidate the non-performing banks or revive the dead banks, do whatever it takes to achieve your goal, said Shah.
Shah also exhorted NABARD to set up a separate wing on the lines of Extension and Expansion of ARDBs to achieve these goals. He promised to meet stakeholders sooner than later to expedite these issues.