JOIN USEleven delegates from Sanasa Development Bank (SDB) and Sanasa Insurance Ltd of Colombo in Sri Lanka, visited Bankers’ Institute of Rural Development (BIRD), Mangalore recently for an exposure programme.
According to a press release, the exposure visit focused on lending by banks to agro/food processing, dairy farming / milk processing units and lending by banks in association with NGOs/MFIs to Self Help Groups/ Joint Liability Groups and undertaking of livelihood activities by such rural group members.
The delegates visited SKDRDP, Dharmasthala and had interaction with Veerendra Heggade on the concept evolved by the latter with regard to Pragathi Bandhu Groups / SHGs, marketing activities of SIRI and also self employment training initiatives of RUDSETI, Ujire. The team also visited some of the food/agro/dairy farming activities of SHGs nurtured, trained and financed by SKDRDP.
They interacted with senior officials of MYRADA about the various agriculture and rural development programmes of this NGO at Mysore. Some of the Joint Liability Groups financed by Cauvery Kalpataru Gramin Bank, Narasimpura Branch undertaking activities like dairy farming, incense stick making, vegetable cultivation, etc, were also visited and first hand knowledge about the functioning of the group members was obtained by the team.
In Mangalore, the team visited the milk processing unit of Karnataka Milk Coop Marketing Federation (NANDINI) to gain insight into the efficient functioning of the unit, besides visiting one cashew processing unit financed by Karnataka Bank and interacted with the financing bank branch and the unit owner thereof.
The team members also visited one rice mill unit financed by the Corporation Bank and interacted with the officials of Animal Husbandry Department of Karnataka and Senior Divisional Manager of National Insurance Co Ltd to have an in depth understanding of the extension services offered by the State Government and livestock insurance facilities available to the farmers in the country.