Govt Launches Rs 1,000 Cr Credit Guarantee Scheme to Support Farmers’ Post-Harvest Loans

Union Food Minister Pralhad Joshi on Monday launched a Rs 1,000 crore credit guarantee scheme aimed at enhancing farmers' access to post-harvest loans. The initiative will leverage electronic warehouse receipts (e-NWRs) to help farmers secure loans more easily, reducing the hesitance of banks to lend against these receipts.

Speaking at the launch event, Minister Joshi said that the government had allocated a corpus fund of Rs 1,000 crore to encourage banks to adopt a more liberal approach to lending. The scheme is designed to facilitate smoother financial transactions for farmers in the crucial post-harvest phase, offering them better liquidity options.

Food Secretary Sanjeev Chopra pointed out the vast untapped potential in post-harvest lending, which currently stands at only Rs 40,000 crore out of the total Rs 21 lakh crore agricultural lending. Lending against e-NWRs is particularly low, with only Rs 4,000 crore being disbursed so far. Chopra expressed optimism that post-harvest lending could rise to Rs 5.5 lakh crore within the next decade, a target that he believes is achievable through improved coordination between the banking and warehousing sectors.

The Secretary also called for improvements in the e-Kisan Upaj Nidhi online platform, increased awareness of pledge financing among farmers, and a review of depository charges. Furthermore, he highlighted the need to boost the number of warehouse registrations, which currently stands at 5,800.

Ministers of State for Food and Consumer Affairs, B L Verma and Nimuben Jayantibhai Bambhaniya, along with WDRA Chairperson Anita Praveen, were also present at the event. 

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