With an aim to buffer the agricultural industry and lessen the sufferings of the poor farmers of the nation due to Covid-19 induced lockdown, the Ministry of Finance has declared on 17th, August’20 that it has sanctioned 1.22 crore Kisan Credit Cards (KCCs). These credit cards will have a credit limit of Rs. 102,265 crore.
“In an effort to buffer the agricultural sector from the shock of COVID-19, a special saturation drive is underway to provide concessional credit to farmers through Kisan Credit Card (KCC). As of 17.08.2020, 1.22 crore KCCs have been sanctioned with a credit limit of Rs. 102,065 crore,” the Finance Ministry said in a statement. The ministry also added that this Credit Card sanctioning will go a long way in reviving the rural economy and accelerating agricultural growth.
Looking at the adverse conditions that the nation has come under since the commencement of national lockdown from 25th, March’2020, issuing KCCs for poor farmers will prove to be a boon for them as their industries have been gravely affected. The ministry also said, “It may be recalled that as part of the Aatma Nirbhar Bharat Package, the government had announced the provision of concessional credit of Rs 2 lakh crore, which is likely to benefit 2.5 crore farmers, including fishermen and dairy farmers.”
