New Delhi [India] June 28 (ANI): Union Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Friday launched a web portal for faster bank settlements of interest subvention claims under Agriculture Infrastructure.
Chouhan launched the web portal developed jointly by the Department of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare (DA&FW) and NABARD to automate and speed up the process of settlement of interest subvention claims of banks submitted under the Agriculture Infrastructure Fund (AIF), a press release by the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers said.
During the launching event, Chouhan said, “PM Modi government is committed to increase farmer’s income by taking various measures. Agriculture Infrastructure Fund was launched by PM Modi with Rs 1 lakh crore funding in a bid to increase storage capacity for crops and reduce losses for farmers.”
He further said that the newly launched automation of credit claims will ensure timely settlement of claims within a day, which otherwise took months for manual settlement. “The move will also ensure transparency and check corrupt methods,” Chouhan added.
The Agriculture Infrastructure Fund scheme was launched in 2020, to develop post-harvest management infrastructure for reducing losses, realisation of better value to farmers, innovation in agriculture, and attracting investments for the creation of Agriculture infrastructure with a total outlay of Rs 1 lakh crore funding through the banks and financial institutions up to 2025-26. The scheme provides for 3 per cent interest subvention to beneficiaries of the scheme for the loans given by banks up to Rs 2 crore for a maximum period of seven years, besides reimbursement of credit guarantee fee paid by banks.
The Union Minister said that the investments worth Rs 72,000 crore have been mobilised with Rs 43,000 crore already sanctioned for 67,871 projects under Agriculture Infrastructure Fund till today.
Chouhan informed that the automated system would help in calculating accurate eligible interest subvention through the portal avoiding the possible human error in manual processing and also help in faster settlement of the claims. The portal shall be used by banks, Central Project Management Unit (CPMU) of DA&FW and NABARD, the press release said.
The automation of the interest subvention claim and credit guarantee fee claim processing will help the government in releasing accurate interest subvention, reduce the turn-around time and in turn help the farmers and agri entrepreneurs financially and encourage them to take up more such projects for development of agriculture in the country, the release said.
Chouhan also launched Krishi Katha, a blog site meant to serve as a digital platform to showcase the voice of the Indian farmers, dedicated to amplifying the experiences, insights and success stories of farmers across the country.
Informing about Krishi Katha, Chauhan said that the new portal on sharing of farmers’ experience will enable the farming community to gain from each other’s experiences. He said, “There are several farmers who are self-experimenting and their successful stories should be brought forward for others to emulate.”
Chouhan said that the voices and stories of farmers often remain uncovered in the vast and diverse landscape of Indian agriculture. “Behind every crop, every field, and every harvest, lies a narrative of resilience, struggles, challenges and triumphs. Krishi Katha” aims to provide a comprehensive and immersive storytelling space where the narratives of India’s agricultural community can be shared and celebrated,” he said.
Highlighting the objectives, Chouhan said, “The objectives behind this initiative will help raise awareness, facilitating exchange of knowledge, fostering collaboration and empowering farmers.” (ANI)
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