The Karnataka Government has asked bankers in the State to enhance credit flow to farmers willing to invest in high technology and protected agriculture.
The State is encouraging farmers to go in for hi-tech shade and protected farming so that their incomes are insulated from the vagaries of monsoon.
In fact, the State has made a budgetary provision of Rs 500 crore this year to give a push for hi-tech and protected agriculture that requires higher level of investments.
Addressing the 127th meeting of the State Level Bankers Committee (SLBC), Chief Secretary, Kaushik Mukherjee, stressed upon the need to boost farm productivity and turn agriculture into agri-business. Protecting and enhancing the income level of farmers is important for achieving food security, he added.
Additional Chief Secretary and Development Commissioner, GV Krishna Rau, called upon the banks to be pro-active in lending for hi-tech and protected agriculture and ensure that those investments are insured. The Government will soon come out with a policy on funding mechanism for hi-tech agriculture.
Syndicate Bank Chairman and Managing Director, Sudhir Kumar Jain, said that the State has disbursed Rs 73,993 crore during 2013-14, ahead of the targeted Rs 73,362 crore under the priority sector credit. Jain, who is also the Chairman of SLBC, said disbursements for agriculture sector was Rs 45,753 crore, 102.71 per cent of the target for the year.