NAMSAI, AUG 20:
The National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) conducted a session on banking, financial services and agricultural credit for B.Sc. Agriculture students of Arunachal University of Studies (AUS) Namsai as part of Module 3 of the Bank Attachment Module under the Rural Agricultural Work Experience (RAWE) and Agro-Industrial Attachment (AIA) Programme 2026.
NABARD Assistant General Manager (District Development) Kamal Roy conducted the session, which aimed to familiarise students with the banking and financial ecosystem and its relevance to agriculture, rural development and agri-entrepreneurship.
The session covered the basics of banking and different types of banks operating in India, including public sector banks, private sector banks, Regional Rural Banks and cooperative banks. Special emphasis was given to the cooperative credit structure, including the Short-Term Cooperative Credit Structure and Long-Term Cooperative Credit Structure, as well as Urban Cooperative Banks.
Students were also introduced to banking products and services such as savings and current accounts, recurring and fixed deposits and remittance facilities. The importance of financial inclusion and social security schemes, including subsidies and interest subvention, was also discussed.
The session further covered insurance and risk management, mutual funds and basic investment concepts. The roles of key financial regulators, including the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) and Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI), were explained.
Roy also familiarised students with development financial institutions such as NABARD, Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI), National Housing Bank (NHB), Micro Units Development and Refinance Agency (MUDRA) and North Eastern Development Finance Corporation (NEDFi), and their roles in supporting agriculture, rural development and micro, small and medium enterprises.
Given the students’ agricultural background, particular focus was placed on agricultural and rural credit mechanisms such as the Kisan Credit Card (KCC), Self-Help Groups (SHGs), Joint Liability Groups (JLGs) and Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs). The session highlighted their role in improving access to formal finance, strengthening collective action, value addition and market linkages.
Students were also briefed on entrepreneurship, skill development and agricultural extension programmes, including Agri-Clinics and Agri-Business Centres (ACABC), Prime Minister’s Employment Generation Programme (PMEGP), Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Grameen Kaushalya Yojana (DDU-GKY) and Agricultural Technology Management Agency (ATMA). Opportunities and schemes available in Arunachal Pradesh were discussed in the context of entrepreneurship, employment and rural development.
The session highlighted emerging career avenues for agriculture graduates in banking, agri-finance, FPO management, agri-enterprises, insurance, rural development and agri-fintech. Students were encouraged to develop skills in financial literacy, project preparation, credit appraisal, market linkages and risk management alongside their technical knowledge of agriculture.
An interactive question-and-answer session enabled students to seek clarification on agricultural credit, KCC, subsidies, insurance, entrepreneurship financing, FPOs and career opportunities in the financial and rural development sectors.
The programme provided students with practical exposure to the financial ecosystem supporting agriculture and rural development and highlighted the role agriculture graduates can play in connecting farmers with formal finance, technology, markets and government development programmes.
