AP annual credit plan pegged at `3.19L crore

Vijayawada: The State Level Bankers Committee (SLBC) meet has unveiled an annual lending plan of Rs 3,19,480 crore for 2022-23 with 51.56 percent earmarked for the agri sector (Rs 1,64,740 crore) with a total priority sector lending standing at 73.76 percent (Rs 2,35,680 crore).

Chairing the SLBC meeting here on Thursday, Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy urged the bankers to lend liberally to the education and housing sectors, which were key to the socio-economic development of the State.

The CM said post-Covid recovery of the country's economy was remarkable and the current index indicated that the GDP growth would be 19.5 percent. However, due to several issues dominating the world and the cascading effect of the increased prices of oil products would have a serious impact on the common man's life.

The role of banks was crucial at this juncture in stabilizing the economy. The State government was doing its best for a transparent and efficient governance and the banks should come forward to lend loans to the people at low interest rates for the empowerment of the rural economy, he said.

Jagan welcomed the 133.19 percent growth over the 2020-21 lending target this year. Commending the work of the banks in certain sectors, he said the agri term loan had witnessed a growth of 167.27 percent. Similarly, the priority sector lending scored 208.48 percent.

However, the sectors like exports (only 31.01 percent lending), education (50.3 percent) and housing (36.11 percent) were not satisfactory. Referring to the Kharif season, Jagan said the short-term crop production loans were to the tune of 87.40 percent and in the Kharif season it fell down to 59.88 percent. Bankers should rethink this difference too, he said.

Similarly, mechanization of farming and poultry got only 82.09 percent and 60.26 percent during 20-21 and tenant farmers got only 42.53 percent. He urged the bankers to continue their support to traditional artisans and small and marginal traders as the State government was also helping them with interest free loans to the tune of Rs 10,000 each.

The CM also sought greater support for women empowerment, liberal loans to the housing sector as valuable lands were being registered in the name of beneficiaries and other schemes where the government was trying to uplift the economic conditions of the downtrodden.