Rs 1000 cr NABARD fund for Odisha this fiscal

OST Bureau

Bhubaneswar, Oct 4:

The National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) has agreed to allocate Rs 1,000 crore to Odisha for 2013-14 fiscal, against which projects involving Rural Infrastructure Development Fund (RIDF) loan of Rs 361.12 crore have already been sanctioned so far.

The loan would be utilised for funding 22 roads and one bridge project involving assistance of Rs163.33 crore, 13 flood protection projects, three drainage system improvement projects, five distributary system improvement  projects, 160 lift irrigation projects (river lift and tube well ) under the Biju Krishak Vikas Yojana (BKVY), a NABARD release said.

The bank had sanctioned Rs 13.75 crore to the state under the RIDF Tranche XIX (2013-14) for construction of 10 passenger jetties, waiting halls and related infrastructure to promote inland waterway transport. The construction would benefit 58 villages and connecting 13 tourist spots.

These projects are expected to generate employment of around 6.35 lakh man-days.

The bank, since inception of the RIDF, has sanctioned Rs 8,500 crore to the state for implementation of 1,73,922 projects under various sectors.

Besides, the the bank has formulated a warehousing scheme under which funding would be available for construction of warehouses, godowns, silos, cold storage units and other cold chain activities, both in public and the private sectors.

As per the present ground level position, a storage gap of 20 lakh MT for warehouses has been estimated in Odisha. The gap is significantly high in five districts viz Bargarh, Balangir, Kalahandi, Sambalpur and Subarnapur.

The scheme can be effectively utilised for reducing this storage gap and ensuring proper scientific storage of agricultural commodities, the release added.