State Bank of India and Nabard have signed an agreement with five NGOs in Bengal for the promotion of 2500 joint liability groups (JLGs) in select districts of the state. The bank plans to extend assistance to the financially excluded sections of the society, especially landless farmers in the districts of Purulia, Paschim Medinipur, Purba Medinipur, Burdwan and North 24 Parganas through these JLGs. According to Partha Pratim Sengupta, CGM of the bank, it hopes to be able to extend support to close to 12,500 tenant farmers under this arrangement. Plans are being made to extend the project in a phased manner to cover the remaining districts. Nabard has fixed a target of credit linking 80,000 JLGs in West Bengal in 2017-18. It has sanctioned assistance for the promotion of 60,000 JLGs by various NGOs in the state through 339 projects in different districts till date, according to A.K. Raybarman, CGM, Nabard West Bengal regional office.
