Examine NABARD fund offer for small agri-biz: CM to chief secy

CHANDIGARH : Chief minister Amarinder Singh on Wednesday directed the chief secretary to examine the NABARD (National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development) proposal for funds to promote small agri businesses among the poor rural youth as well as farmers with small landholdings, besides landless labourers.

The CM also asked the NABARD chairman to allow cooperative banks to diversify to widen its ambit of operations from advancement of crop loans to term loans to farmers and the rural populace.

The NABARD chairman, leading a delegation of officials, had called on the CM for a meeting here. An official spokesperson said the CM also suggested exploring the possibility of providing such loans to young entrepreneurs who intended to set up their ventures in urban areas to resolve the problem of unemployment.

The CM conceded a proposal of the NABARD chairman to strengthen the existing network of Farmer Produce Organisations (FPOS), saying it would help bail out the small and marginal farmers who were facing acute hardships on account of lack of proper marketing infrastructure for their produce.

Amarinder also asked the chief secretary to head a committee comprising secretary agriculture and a NABARD representative as member secretary to develop a roadmap for the promotion of farmer produce organisations (FPO) and to oversee its implementation.