-The Economic Times Small and marginal farmers who constitute more than 80% of total farmer households in the country face exclusion from formal financial channels," says the Nair Committee on priority sector lending. The same report says "commercial banks have been prescribed targets since late 1960s for priority sector lending". The banking system failed the farmers and the needy despite nationalisation, but is there a viable model that could help the millions...
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Safal shows the way by Latha Jishnu & Jyotika Sood
Mother Dairy’s retail model helps farmers but is under pressure from chains Call it the Safal model. For close to 25 years, a large chunk of households in the National Capital Region have had access to fresh fruits and vegetables at affordable prices—at rates much lower than what the local vegetable and fruits market or the handcart vendor would charge. This was made possible by standing the concept of buying on...
More »Tamil Nadu’s laptop distribution scheme hit by delays by Surabhi Agarwal & Vidya Padmanabhan
Tamil Nadu’s free laptop distribution scheme, involving what is said to be the largest government order for computing equipment in India, hangs in the balance as all but one vendor, hit by the hard disk shortage created by recent floods in Thailand, have refused to sign on to the state administration’s delivery schedule. “Out of six vendors only one has signed an agreement and we have given a purchase order,” an...
More »Muddling through retail reform by Ajay Dua
In opening up the retail trade to foreign equity last week, the Union government demonstrated uncharacteristic courage and conviction. While this policy measure might help dispel doubts about its ability to take decisions, it has raised a political dust-storm more intense and widespread than it had probably bargained for. No doubt, taking a view on the issue of liberalising FDI norms for multi-brand retail had been on the government’s agenda for...
More »Rural poor left out in financial inclusion
-The Indian Express Financial inclusion in India seems to be far from inclusive. Out of a total of 5,165 new branches opened in 2011, only 21.86 per cent are rural branches, says a study. A growth rate of more than 700 per cent in urban Customer Service Points (CSPs) over the last year points towards the latest trend of urbanisation among Business Correspondents (BCs). Although there is not much difference between growth...
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