State hopes to surpass Andhra in providing credit linkage to SHGs

Kolkata: The state Panchayats and Rural Development (P&RD) department hopes to surpass Andhra Pradesh and secure the number one rank in providing credit linkage to Self Help Groups (SHGs) across the state.

“In the 2022-23 fiscal, Rs 20620 crore credit linkage has been provided to the SHGs which is second in the country after Andhra Pradesh. We are hopeful of surpassing Andhra Pradesh this year to become number one. Bengal is presently number one in the country in formation of SHGs with 12 lakh groups already formed comprising 1.15 crore members,” state P & RD minister Pradip Mazumdar said while addressing a state-level felicitation event organised to recognise outstanding performance of Community Resource Person- Enterprise Promotion (CRP-EPs) under Start-Up Village Entrepreneurship Program (SVEP).

Credit linkage amounting to over Rs 90,000 crore has been provided in the last 5 years. Under SVEP, till now, a total of 13350 enterprises have been promoted and a total of Rs 38.34 crore were provided to support these enterprises in the form of Community Enterprise Fund (CEF) in 16 blocks across the state. The SVEP programme is being implemented in another seven blocks this year.

Area and demand-specific enterprise formation through the support of local resource persons is the most noteworthy feature of SVEP.

CRP-EPs are trained resource persons selected from local SHG members mainly to identify both new and existing potential entrepreneurs, preparing their business plan, mobilise their business plan to avail CEF, handholding support at their doorstep to guide them and make ready to repay and sustain their enterprises.

About 175 CRP-EP including 50 trainers received certificates from National Academy of RSETI on Wednesday at the event.