Step up lending to push industrial growth in district, Collector tells banks
Tiruchi is emerging as a centre of good health infrastructure next only to Chennai and Coimbatore in the State. Banks should look to lend to the sector, where investments are required by both individuals and institutions to strengthen the infrastructure, Collector K. Rajamani said.
Food processing industry is another area of focus and the district has already initiated measures such as collective farming, procuring, sorting, grading, storing and transporting perishable commodities such as banana and onion with financial support of Rs. 30 crore from NABARD for supply chain management, he said and suggested that bankers step up lending taking advantage of the emerging opportunities in the district.
Mr. Rajamani was speaking after releasing the Potential Linked Credit Plan for 2018-19, prepared by the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD), here recently. The NABARD has assessed the credit flow potential of the district at Rs. 8259.20 crore, a growth of 10% over the projections for the current year.
Mini textile park
Dwelling on the potential for industrial growth in the district, Mr. Rajamani said a mini textile park is likely to come up soon on an area of about 10 acres in the district. The textile industry, he observed, is bound to grow rapidly in the district. About 1,000 acres has been earmarked for an SIPCOT industrial park at Manapparai. Opportunities are likely to emerge in ancillary activities supporting Defence and Railway sectors in the district.
A trade centre would come up at Panjapur and it would serve as a facilitator for MSME growth. With the Tiruchi airport poised for expansion with Rs. 900 crore investment, it is expected that exports in agri and other sectors would grow, he said. “The focus should also be on improving the skills of the work force to seize the advantages,” he said.
Highlighting the importance of dry land farming, he emphasised the need for improving production and productivity of millets, pulses and oilseeds.
Education loans
Bankers should be considerate and extend education loans to needy people without delay, as it will serve as a catalyst to uplift a generation, he said.
S. Suresh Kumar, Assistant General Manager, NABARD said of the total plan outlay, 57% is earmarked for agriculture sector, followed by MSME sector with an outlay of 17%, housing at 13%, education at 5% and the rest for other sectors such as export credit, social infrastructure and renewable energy.
Under agriculture, the plan has estimated a credit flow of Rs. 3085.72 crore towards crop loans and Rs. 958.13 crore for investments in farm mechanisation, water resources and animal husbandry, he said.
S. Thyagarajan, Assistant General Manage, Reserve Bank of India, Chennai, requested banks to increase term lending to agriculture, self help and joint liability groups and entrepreneurs through MUDRA, besides pushing digital banking.
S. Vaidyanathan, Lead Bank Manager, said the district credit plan would be prepared based on the projections of the potential linked credit plan.
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