Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Feb 28: Chief Secretary Atal Dulloo highlighted during a meeting the significant progress made in various credit-linked schemes of the Agriculture Production Department (APD), stating that the sector in J&K has an untapped credit potential of approximately Rs 3000 crore if financial institutions optimize their efforts.
Present at the meeting were the Principal Secretary of APD, MD of J&K Bank, MD of HADP/JKCIP, DG of Budget, Deputy Commissioners, Heads of Departments in APD, Convenor of UTLBC, representatives from BISAG-N, and other relevant officials, with outstation members participating virtually.
The Chief Secretary urged Deputy Commissioners and relevant departments to closely collaborate with J&K Bank to enhance the approval and disbursement rates of applications. He noted that there exists a substantial growth opportunity in this sector, and banks could capture additional business of Rs 3000 crore with a more focused approach. He encouraged financial institutions to pursue this potential, highlighting the lower Non-Performing Asset (NPA) rates associated.
Dulloo emphasized that nearly half of the applications submitted via the department’s portal should be credit-linked, as these products are highly appealing due to guaranteed interest subvention and an extended moratorium period not found elsewhere.
He recommended that the Bank allocate some of their top personnel to oversee the progress of these schemes, aiming to improve uptake relative to the total number of applicants registered online. He also assessed the scheme-wise progress and pending applications across districts, inquiring about any areas of poor performance. Additionally, he addressed the need to clear applications pending for over 100 days, directing banks to expedite the process.
The Chief Secretary also stressed the importance of raising public awareness and supporting applicants in generating successful Detailed Project Reports (DPRs) to boost application approval rates.
During the meeting, Principal Secretary APD Shailendra Kumar reported that the Department aims to cover 1.3 million farmers under the KCC scheme, currently reaching around 1.08 million active customers. He shared that an IT solution named ‘Khetscore’ is being developed in collaboration with banks to evaluate the creditworthiness of each farm using historical data, external risk assessments, and geographical factors.
MD of HADP, Rahul Yadav, also provided updates on measures the Department is implementing to enhance scheme uptake among farmers and reported on overall progress in recent months.
Conclusively, the Chief Secretary unveiled several publications showcasing the progress and success stories of HADP and other initiatives aimed at transforming the agriculture sector and significantly increasing farmers’ incomes across the UT of J&K.
