Bank Launches Crop Protection Loan Scheme In Mandsaur District

Mandsaur (Madhya Pradesh): In a first-of-its-kind initiative, the Mandsaur District Central Cooperative Bank introduced a special loan scheme to help farmers protect their crops from damage caused by Nilgai, wild boars and other wild animals in June.

Farmers in Mandsaur and Neemuch districts have long faced crop losses due to herds of wild animals trampling standing Kharif and Rabi crops.

The issue has repeatedly drawn public attention and has also been raised in the Assembly. Previous attempts to control the problem through the Boma method did not yield the desired results.

Acting under the guidance of District Central Cooperative Bank Administrator and Collector Aditi Garg, the bank has launched a medium-term loan scheme for crop protection measures.

Under the scheme, eligible farmers can obtain loans of up to Rs 30,000 per bigha, subject to a maximum limit of Rs three lakh.

Farmers can use the funds for wire fencing, security netting and other protective infrastructure.

District Cooperative Bank CEO Sunil Kachhara said the bank has earmarked Rs 50 crore for the initial phase of the scheme in Mandsaur and Neemuch districts.

The loan tenure will be five years, with repayment through 10 half-yearly instalments. The maximum annual interest rate has been fixed at 11%.