The State Government has sought financial assistance to the tune of Rs1,337 crore from the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) under its Rural Infrastructure Development Fund (RIDF) scheme for the current fiscal to meet some critical gaps in some major infrastructure in the State.
The proposal was given by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik during his meeting with the NABARD chairman Dr Harsh Kumar Bhanwala at the State Secretariat here on Thursday.
Out of Rs1,337 crore sought by the State Government, Rs500 crore is proposed for bridge projects, Rs200 crore each for road and borewell projects and Rs437 crore for irrigation projects.
The Chief Minister urged the Bhanwala to approve Rs752 crore pipe water supply project in Nuapada district to provide fluoride-free water to the people. He also proposed relaxation of the 30 per cent ceiling for rural connectivity as it is necessary for rural roads and bridge projects.
lauding the proposals of the Chief Minister, Bhanwala assured him that NABARD will take steps for the approval of these proposals. He also praised the role of the cooperative banks in providing agriculture loans in the State.
The meeting also discussed development of irrigation infrastructure and the activities of Primary Agriculture Cooperative Societies.
According to a Press release issued by the NABARD, the refinance support from it to the cooperatives and regional rural banks (RRBs) for providing production loans to small and marginal farmers, has reached an all time high of Rs 4,225 crore in 2013-14.
“During the current financial year, NABARD has already extended an amount of Rs 3,120 crore to various agencies, by the end of December 2014, so that subsidised short term credit is extended to small and marginal farmers,” the release stated.
The release stated that under the rural infrastructure development fund (RIDF) the cumulative RIDF support extended to the State over the years has also crossed Rs10,698 crore by December 2014 involving around 2 lakh rural infrastructure projects under road, bridge, irrigation, flood protection and drainage sectors.
To promote an integrated approach for agricultural operations, a ‘Pilot Project on Augmenting Farm Productivity’ had been taken up by the NABARD in Baleswar since 2012. The project aims at increasing the crop productivity by 30 per cent and the net income at farmers’ level by 50 per cent over a period of three years, added the release.