Sunday, September 19, 2021

Prosperity of Indebtedness



Since my childhood, I have been told that excess of anything will do more harm than good. Anything excess will cause a negative dominos effect for a longer duration of time. Excess of credit in any given financial system will cause economic disbalances. Consequently, the excess supply versus demand has to be checked periodically and addressed appropriately. Financial inclusion in the agriculture profession is surely acting as a catalyst for the rural economy. It is of utmost importance, especially in a country like India where 70% of the population depends on agriculture as a profession.


A recent survey conducted by NSO(National Statistical Office) says slightly more than 50% of agricultural households are in debt with an average outstanding of INR 74,121/-. Though, the same survey of 2013 said 57% of agricultural households were indebted. NSO carried out the survey on land and livestock of the households for assessment of the on-ground situation of rural agriculture households from January to December 2019.



The Financial Inclusion committee under the leadership of Dr. C. Rangarajan reported 56% of households in India are excluded from mainstream financial services i.e. they don't even have bank accounts. This trend of declining indebtedness (57% to 50.2%) is indicating a slight movement of financial independence may begin in the rural agriculture household despite having a strong financial inclusion mechanism nearby, be it banks or microfinance institutions.

Survey also points out that more than 85% of agriculture households held less than 1 hectare of cultivation land. The major segment of debt still lies at bottom of the pyramid. Small and marginal farmers hold major credit and less productivity due to varied reasons ranging from rainfall to market availability.

In rural India, the share of outstanding debt from institutional credit
agencies(banks and MFI's mostly) was 66 percent against 34 percent from non-institutional(professional money lenders, savkars) credit agencies. Here comes the glitch, the cause of concern. Debt is one of the major causes of farmer suicide in the country. Non-institutional agencies continue to pester arduous recovery practices which leads to major social and personal humiliations and that left farmers in distress. One of the findings from this survey can lead to the strengthening of institutional credit mechanisms. This will also avoid the double balance sheet problem economy is facing at the micro-level.

I have read a couple of articles, majorly polemic in nature suggesting future distress in the rural economy, whereas as I can see the finding and interpretation my strengthen the credit mechanism. With appropriate and customized financial products and market availability will establish a good credit culture. Addressing these issues will double farmers income not immediate but in the longer run.



Faith

Amol Nakve




((Views expressed in this article are personal)

Sunday, September 12, 2021

Lives changed that week

 Finally, I successfully marked my presence in a book. One of my photograph is being published as a book cover. It has been said that 'never judge the book by its cover' but I witnessed the quote now. It's such nice book and recommend all to read it. Somewhere you can find my name too. 


Sincere thanks to Dr. Jayant Mukherjee for giving me an opportunity to published my photograph in synch with his great narration. Also, taking this opportunity to express my sincere gratitude to you for being connect with me, for being source enery and motivation in life.

List but not last, happy readings....


You may get it on below link. 

https://www.amazon.in/dp/8195342647/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1629117839&sr=8-1


Faith 

Amol

Families

 Families! Clicked at Matheran, Maharashtra, India.