Agricultural credit for sustainable rural development: An empirical study of Jalpaiguri district, West Bengal

Indian agriculture is dominated by small cultivators. With an average holding size of just of less than 2 ha size 86 percent of holdings, Indian agriculture produces sufficient food, feed, and fibre to India's large population, and in addition generates some net export surplus. This would not have been possible without the continuous flow of massive credit to farmers to buy modern inputs. Credit is one of the most crucial inputs for agricultural development. Agricultural credit in itself is not an input but it helps in creating environment for the adoption of modern production technology and encouraging private investments on this sector. Our analysis in this paper shows that the in spite of commendable policy changes in Indian agri-credit system, the fact that the percentage of institutional credit in overall credit to agriculture has remained within a narrow range due to inadequacy and so many constrains in our studied area of Jalpaiguri District. The ANOVA results revealed that there is significant difference between perception of land less and land lords. More income group farmers and low income group farmers and Z test revels relationship between income and crop loss and choice of sources of credit. In conclusion it is recommended that a separate priority should be given to agricultural credit exclusively for small farmers. Government should work in close association with Small Farmers’ and Development Agencies for the benefits of small farmers.