Farm credit flow surpassed the target by about 14% to Rs 4,26,531 crore during 2010-11 financial year.
The government had set the target of farm credit disbursal at Rs 3,75,000 crore during the year, said an official statement, highlighting the quantum jump.
Cooperative banks disbursed Rs 69,000 crore while regional rural banks disbursed Rs 43,000 crore, the statement added.
The credit flow target for the current financial year (2011-12) has been fixed at Rs 4.75 lakh crore. Banks have been asked to step up direct lending, especially to small and marginal farmers.
The government has been providing crop loans at concessional interest rates since 2006-07. In the current financial year (2011-12), the government is providing interest subvention by 3%, thus bringing down the effective rate of interest to 4% per annum.
This interest subvention is provided to the farmers who repay their short term crop loans on time. In 2009-10, the subvention rate for timely repayment of crop loans was 1%, which was raised to 2% in 2010-11 and further to 3% this year.
Over the years, agriculture credit flow has registered significant jump. It has gone up from Rs 86,981 crore in 2003-04 to Rs 4,26,531 crore in 2010-11, the statement added.