the goan I network
PANAJI
Banks and other financial institutions have been way off targets for disbursing credit to the farm sector in Goa barely touching a fifth of the annual quantum fixed by the government for three successive financial years.
Information furnished by the Centre to Parliament revealed that a paltry Rs 33 crore were disbursed to agriculturists in Goa during the 2018-19 fiscal as against the target of Rs 150 crore set by the government.
National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) is the nodal agency that governs credit to the farm sector and co-ordinates a state-level panel of bankers which also includes officials of the State government aimed at improving the flow of credit to the primary agriculture sector.
The Centre also told the Parliament that only Rs 34 crore was availed by the agriculture sector in Goa during 2017-18 while the quantum of credit was marginally higher at Rs 37 crore in 2016-17.
The targets of credit for the farm sector in Goa was Rs 135-crore in both these years.
