Over 200 farmers join post-budget webinar on agriculture, rural prosperity

Over 200 farmers from 10 districts across the state participated in a “Post-Budget Webinar on Agriculture & Rural Prosperity” on Saturday to discuss the implementation of announcements made during the Union Budget for the Financial Year 2025-26.

The webinar was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and chaired by secretaries from the Department of Agriculture & Farmers’ Welfare (DoA&FW). Representatives from the DoA&FW, along with stakeholders such as the RBI, NABARD, Scheduled Commercial Banks (SCBs), Regional Rural Banks (RRBs), State Cooperatives, District Central Cooperative Banks (StCBs and DCCBs), State Level Bankers’ Committees (SLBCs), Krishi Vikas Kendras (KVKs) and farmers from across the country, also participated in the discussions.

According to the Economic Survey 2024, as of March 31, 2024, there are 7.75 crore operational Kisan Credit Card (KCC) accounts. The KCC scheme has been instrumental in meeting short-term credit needs, enhancing agricultural productivity, and boosting farmers’ incomes. Additionally, the KCC-Modified Interest Subvention Scheme (KCC-MISS) has provided loans at an effective subsidised interest rate of four per cent.

In a bid to further improve access to affordable credit, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has increased the collateral-free KCC loan limit from Rs 1.6 lakh to Rs 2 lakh. A significant step forward in the Union Budget 2025-26 is the enhancement of the credit limit under the Modified Interest Subvention Scheme (MISS) from Rs 3 lakh to Rs 5 lakh. This move is expected to ease the financial stress on small and marginal farmers and encourage greater investment in agriculture, horticulture, animal husbandry and fisheries.

Over the past few years, the government has provided Rs 1.44 lakh crore to farmers through MISS. It aims to increase short-term agricultural credit from Rs 9.81 lakh crore in 2023-24 to Rs 20 lakh crore by 2029-30 through these initiatives.