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India's first agri-card launched

The country's first agricultural credit card for farmers, the Andhra Bank Patabbhi Agricard was launched by Union Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha in Hyderabad on Sunday.

The Pattabhi Agricard enables the card-holder to draw cash and purchase agricultural inputs against the card. The card also offers accident insurance cover of Rs 100,000.

Sinha expressed hope that the good performance on the agricultural front would help the revival of the country's economy. Good crop output would increase the purchasing capacity of the people and demand, which in turn would boost the economy.

He stressed the need for improving the lot of farmers, as the entire economy was dependent on agriculture.

He also called for an attitudinal change among the banks in extending loans to poor farmers. He said microbanking concept was initiated at the grassroot level to help the people and said the self-help groups should be given a boost for implementing employment generation schemes.

Union minister of state for urban development Bandaru Dattatreya said the Centre was considering removal of barriers on free movement of quality grain in the country. The Vajpayee government had, for the first time, allocated 51 per cent of budget for development of rural areas, he claimed.

Andhra Bank chairman T J A Ganiga said the bank's total business had crossed Rs 112 billion and about 45 per cent of the advances were for priority sector. The bank was exceeding the targets set by the Reserve Bank of India under special agricultural credit plans.

The bank's outstanding advances to agricultural sector was over Rs 6 billion at present and had set a target of Rs 8 billion to be achieved by March 1999, he added.

UNI