NSTFDC and SBI Sign Refinance Agreement

The National Scheduled Tribe Finance and Development Corporation (NSTFDC) and State Bank of India (SBI) signed a Refinance Agreement on August 1 in the presence of Shri V. Kishore Chandra Deo, Union Minister of Panchayati Raj and Tribal Affairs. The agreement was signed by the Shri Gur Saroop Sood, Chairman-cum-Managing Director of NSTFDC and Shri A. Krishna Kumar, Managing Director and Group Executive (NB) of SBI. On the occasion, Shri Kishore Chandra Deo said that this is a significant occasion when State Bank of India, the largest Public Sector Bank in the country, has entered into an arrangement with NSTFDC for channelizing concessional loans to the Scheduled Tribes. This also reflects positively on the SBI that they not only cater to the large business houses and high net worth individuals and industrialists but are also committed to economic upliftment of the weaker sections of the society.

The Minister said that today’s arrangements would open a new era towards micro financing of needy Scheduled Tribes by NSTFDC through SBI. Under the arrangements, NSTFD would provide refinance to SBI for loans extended to Self Help Group comprising all ST members. ST beneficiaries would pay concessional interest rate of 6% p.a. only. This arrangement would open doors of more than 14000 branches of SBI to the needy Scheduled Tribes Community for seeking loans upto RS. 5 lakh at the concessional rate.

He informed that the NSTFDC is an apex organization or economic development of Scheduled Tribes, was set up in April 2001 under the Ministry of Tribal Affairs. This Corporation provides financial assistance to Scheduled Tribes at concessional rates of interest for taking up income generation activities. The Corporation in its 11 years of operations has sanctioned financial assistance for schemes costing around Rs. 2200 crore. of this NSTFDC share is around Rs. 1200 crore, while the balance has been met by way of margin money/subsidy/promoters contribution. This financial assistance has benefited around Rs. 5 lakh STs throughout the country.

Shri Deo said that most of the STs are geographically isolated and under-privileged on most of the development indices. This calls for specific need based intervention from developmental agencies and not a ‘one size fit all’ approach. He said that within the framework of schemes of NSTFDC, a tribal can take up any vocation suited to his/her aptitude, skill set, habitat etc. There is a complete flexibility in this regard. He can opt to obtain assistance for agricultural or services or transport or even industrial sector activity. NSTFDC’s recently launched Education Loan Scheme is also calibrated to empower ST students for obtaining professional/technical education and for pursuing Ph.D in India. The NSTFDC is not only implementing its schemes through State Channelizing Agencies but is also increasingly exploring the avenues of reaching out through Public Sector Banks and Regional Rural Banks who have entered into agreements with NSTFDC.