Aatmanirbhar Bharat Package: Kisan Credit Cards campaign launched for 1.5 crore dairy farmers

Aatmanirbhar Bharat Package: In a bid to strengthen Aatmanirbhar Abhiyan Package, the Narendra Modi Government will provide Kisan Credit Card (KCC) to 1.5 crore dairy farmers belonging to Milk Unions and Milk producing Companies within the next two months (1st June-31st July 2020) under a special drive. The Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying association with Department of Financial Services has already circulated relevant circulars and KCC application format to all State Milk Federation and Milk Unions for implementing the same on a mission mode.

Under the dairy cooperative movement, approximately 1.7 crore farmers are associated with 230 Milk Unions in the country.

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In the first phase of this campaign, the target is to cover all farmers who are members of dairy cooperative societies and associated with different Milk Unions and who do not have KCC. Farmers who already have KCC based on their land ownership, can get their KCC credit limit enhanced, though interest subvention shall be available only to the extent of Rs 3 lakhs. Although the general limit for KCC credit without collateral remains Rs. 1.6 lakh, but the case of farmers whose milk is directly procured by Milk Unions falls under tie up arrangements between the producers and processing units without any intermediaries, and hence the credit limits without Collateral can be up to Rs.3 lakh. This will ensure more credit availability for dairy farmers associated with Milk Unions as well as assuring repayment of loans to banks.

The special drive to provide KCC to 1.5 crore dairy farmers is part of the Prime Minister’s Aatmanirbhar Bharat package for Farmers. Finance Minister on 15 May 2020 has announced to cover 2.5 crore new farmers under the KCC scheme. This will provide an additional liquidity of Rs.5 lakh crore in the hands of farmers, who are suffering from the recent downturn of economy.

As, dairy is among the fastest growing sectors of the economy with a CAGR of above 6% in the last 5 years, providing short term credit to dairy farmers for meeting their requirements for working capital, marketing etc. will boost their productivity tremendously.