The controversy on NAFSCOB MD Bhima Subramaniyam’s charges against NABARD for not inviting the Chairman of the apex body of co-op banks to the two-day National Conference on “Best Practices in Rural Cooperative Banks’ ‘, refuses to die.
In an official letter, the General Manager of NABARD Dr A V Bhavani Shankar refutes the charges. We produce below the letter sent to the Indian Cooperative.
Excerpts:
Madam/Dear Sir
Please refer to your news item “NABARD’s conference on rural co-op banking ignores NAFSCOB” dated 17 October 2023 on your website https://www.indiancooperative.com.
We inform that NABARD organised the two-day National Conference on “Best Practices in Rural Cooperative Banks”. The intention of the programme was to deliberate on best practices of rural credit cooperatives and come out with forward-looking recommendations for adoption by Short-Term Cooperative Credit Structure (STCCS).
We clarify that NABARD had invited NAFSCOB to the conference. Shri. K Ravindra Rao, Chairman, NAFSCOB has been invited as a Guest of honour to grace and share his valuable experience in the conference.
We place on record our concern on the aforesaid news published by you. We would appreciate it if you could publish a suitable rejoinder to the aforementioned article as soon as possible and inform us at the earliest.
Regards
Dr A V Bhavani Shankar
General Manager
There is war going on between NAFSCOB and NABARD as NABARD is slowly deviating from its role of rural development and becoming a commercial bank as can be seen from the last few years, it’s not providing much needed production loans ie., SAO even after closure of Khariff season and also delay in release of RCF loans and focusing on financing loans like ST Others, ASAO at higher ROI which is hurting the farmers and SCBs are suffering with less margins. Being a leader of SCBs disbursing Short Term loans, the NAFSCOB is supposed to be involved in many of the activities taken up by the Ministry of Cooperation, GOI including the PACS Computerization, but the NABARD is not involving NAFSCOB at all.