RANGPUR, Oct 11 (BSS): Rajshahi Krishi Unnayan Bank (RAKUB) Managing Director M Fazlul Haque has directed his branch managers to disburse 20 per cent of the total crop loan amounting to Tk 370 million (37 crore) among the share-croppers of greater Rangpur.

The share-croppers will get such loans, amounting from Tk 5,000 to Tk 10,000 each, in greater district and elsewhere from RAKUB branches in Rajshahi Division from this current fiscal without deposits for the first time in the country's banking history.

Mr Haque gave the direction at the 'Branch Managers' Conference of RAKUB's Five Zones in greater Rangpur-2009' as the chief guest at the ASOD training centre in Kamal Kachna area in the town Saturday.

RAKUB Rangpur Divisional General Manager Deb Das presided over the conference.

All of RAKUB's 107 branch managers, five zonal managers, divisional audit officers and its officials of Rangpur, Gaibandha, Nilphamari, Lalmonirhat and Kurigram zones took part in the conference.

The managing director asked the branch managers and senior officials of the bank to ensure smooth and timely disbursements of Tk 370 million as crop loans among the share-croppers of the five districts in greater Rangpur during the fiscal 2009-10.

The conference was told that these loan disbursement activities would continue through all its 107 branches in the greater district under a regular scheme "Group-based Loan Support for Landless and Share-croppers Without Deposit".

The newly launched scheme of the bank will enhance credit-flow towards all potential crop production sectors by bringing the landless, marginal and small share-croppers, who are unable for supportive deposit to further boost agri-production and alleviating poverty.

The speakers said that the scheme would help increasing the overall agri-productions by the landless farmers and share-croppers, who are involved with farming activities more than the land owners and will also reduce the number of land owner loan-recipients.

They highlighted the ongoing agri-loan disbursement activities in crop farming, SME, nursery, pisciculture, area approach, revolving crop credit (RCC) etc. when a total of Tk 558.8 million has already been disbursed among 9,954 farmers in greater Rangpur since last July.

RAKUB Rangpur Divisional GM Deb Das and Rangpur Zonal Manager Ashraf Hossain said that the traditional crop loans programme for the farmers has already been transformed into easy-term three-year RCC by all branches.

At the same time, RAKUB's Pisciculture Village and Poultry Village Loan Programmes have been continuing very successfully in the five Zones.

In addition, RAKUB under a MoU recently signed with the Barind Multipurpose Development Authorities (BMDA) has jointly taken up a new crop loan disbursement programme among the farmers with the BMDA.

Besides, RAKUB has been working in line with the agriculture and rural loan disbursement policies of the present government to ensure overall rural uplifts and developments and poverty alleviation and achieving self-reliance by the poor.

The ongoing loan disbursement programmes have already started showing positive impacts in the agricultural sector in greater Rangpur to ensuring food security, poverty alleviation and social developments during this fiscal, they said.

At present, the group formation works of the landless farmers and share-croppers are going on in a full swing at the grassroots levels and the disbursement is expected to start very soon to assist the targeted group farmers through group-based credit support.

"All necessary steps will be taken to ensure transparent, smooth and easy process crop-loan disbursements among the share-croppers by ensuring complete transparency", Mr Hossain said.