While the annual agricultural credit disbursement targets have been surpassed in recent years by the credit purveying agencies, the comfort behind these aggregate numbers disappears when it is examined in terms of the regional distribution and disbursal by size/class of landholdings. Given that the flow of agriculture credit has not necessarily been inclusive in the last decade, this analysis points out that while deciding on the targets for the Twelfth Five-Year Plan, it is important to address the regional and size imbalances. It is also important to recognise the need to synchronise the flow of credit with the agricultural seasons so as to optimise its impact on agricultural production.
