Nabard to fund Bhopal drinking water supply project among others

Amongst other projects Nabard will fund rural community health centers and making school buildings

National Bank for Rural and Agriculture Development -- the ace refinance bank in India, has said it would fund horticulture and dairy projects in Madhya Pradesh under its rural infrastructure fund, besides a drinking water project in Bhopal and computerization of cooperative banks. The state government sought Nabard support on area-based funding including backward and forward linkages and bank credit to rural development project.

The state chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan today urged the Bank to fund such projects in rural development in a meeting. The chief minister also urged the Bank chairman to render financial and technical support in computerization of cooperative banks.

 

"We have a discussion with the chief minister and he has sought Nabard support in funding horticulture and dairy projects for term loans," Harsh Kumar Bhanwala, chairman of Nabard said here. So far Nabard has refinanced various rural development fund to the tune of Rs 1950 crore of them Rs 1500 crore has already been disbursed. The Nabard, Bhanwala further said, would fund to producer companies in agriculture sector provided they come in form of cooperative society, trust or even as partnership firm. Nabard has also been asked to raise its refinance to Rs 2000 crore this year as state has posted a handsome growth for the last couple of years. He said the area of concern in Madhya Pradesh is outstanding credit which is Rs 13000 per person per acre against Rs 26000 nationally.

"This year the funding is likely go up by Rs 250 crore under rural infrastructure development fund including Kolar water augmentation project. The Kolar project will include augmentation of water in nearby Kolar reservoir that supplies water to the city. The Kolar reservoir does not have sufficient water and it needs a water augmentation project. The Nabard would fund the project to augment water in Kolar reservoir from a nearby Sip river. It would also irrigate fields in nearby villages. The project would be of Rs 145 crore," Bhawala said. Nabard will also take up a skill development project in cooperation with NIIT at Nasrullaganj of Sehore district.

Besides rural roads, infrastructure the Nabard would also fund rural community health centers, drinking water supply projects and school buildings and even Industrial training institutes. "The chief minister has also asked us to fund industrial training institute buildings in rural areas. We will also provide them technical and finance support in computerization of cooperative banks," Bhanwala said.