The Gujarat government has approved Rs 174.07 crore in interest assistance to cooperative banks to provide 2% interest relief on short-term agricultural loans, benefiting over 10 lakh farmers across the state.
Agriculture Minister Jitu Vaghani said the assistance would cover loans disbursed from cooperative banks’ own funds between April 1 and September 30, 2025, enabling farmers to access crop loans at a concessional interest rate of 7%.
Introduced in 2009-10, the scheme aims to reduce farmers’ borrowing costs while strengthening the cooperative agricultural credit system. Cooperative banks had previously charged interest rates of 10–13%.
Gujarat’s three-tier cooperative credit network comprises one state cooperative bank, 18 district central cooperative banks and over 10,900 Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS). The network serves more than 10 lakh farmers, including a significant share of small and marginal cultivators.
