SURPRISINGLY THESE SEVEN MANDALS HAVE NO BANK FACILITY

While the state tom-toms its 'pro-farmer' agenda from the rooftops, this doesn't reflect so when it comes to extending sops to the ryots. A case in point: farmers in seven mandals spread across three regions of the state do not have access to banking facilities to avail of loans and they continue to depend on private moneylenders to raise crops. Worse still, the bankers have also remained unmoved to the ryots' woes. Sources said the farmers' pleas to set up banks have fallen on the deaf ears of both the authorities as well as the bankers.

Gangavaram and Maredumilli (East Godavari), Veldurthy (Guntur), Chennaraopet (Warangal), Tadicherla and Mahamuttaram (Karimnagar ), and Tottembedu (Chittoor ) are the seven mandals who do not have a branch of any bank -- neither public sector nor private. The combined population in these seven mandals is over five lakhs.

Ironically, at the last statelevel bankers committee (SLBC) meeting, a resolution was passed to ensure that bank services were made available in all the villages which have a population of more than 2000. In another important decision , it was decided that all the non-banking mandals should have banking facilities by the end of December 2009.

As usual nothing has happened . By any measure a mandal consists of nearly 15-20 villages having a population of not less than 35,000 and a maximum of 50,000. "If the bankers could not take note of non-banking mandals all these days, how can we believe that these bankers will touch the hearts of each farmer in the state to end their plight," asked P Narasimha Rao, convener of All-India Kisan Sabha (AIKS) national meet, which is to be held in Guntur next week.

Analysts said that one of the reasons that farmers were driven to suicides was because of the "adamant" bankers. "Non-availability of agriculture loans pushes the farmers to the mercy of private moneylenders who charge whopping rates of interests," opined agriculture scientist N Venugopala Rao.

Strangely, 109 mandals in the state have only one bank branch belying the claims of "pro-farmer" policies of the Congress government.

While TRS chief K Chandrasekhar Rao's present headquarters Mahbubnagar and his former stronghold Karimnagar have the highest bank branches, the late chief minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy and former chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu seemed not to have done any great service to their homeland farmers as nearly 10 mandals each in Kadapa and Chittoor have only one bank branch. One branch for at least 10,000 population is ideal and it is difficult for us to cater to nearly 30-40 thousand people with one branch,admitted a senior banker not wanting to be named.

(SOURCE;TOI)