Rs 2,847 Cr NABARD Refinance Flowed Into Jammu Kashmir in Five Years, Govt Tells Parliament  | Kashmir Life

SRINAGAR: The government has said that Jammu and Kashmir received a total of Rs 2,847.16 crore in refinancing support from the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) over the last five years, underscoring sustained institutional credit flow to the rural economy.

Replying to an unstarred question in the Lok Sabha on December 15, 2025, Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary said NABARD extended Rs 1,162.88 crore as long-term refinance and Rs 1,684.28 crore as short-term refinance to Jammu and Kashmir during the period.

According to the year-wise data placed before Parliament, long-term refinance to Jammu and Kashmir stood at Rs 168.11 crore in 2020–21. This declined to Rs 118.23 crore in 2021–22 before rising to Rs 166.42 crore in 2022–23. A sharp increase was recorded in 2023–24, when long-term refinance touched Rs 503.72 crore, followed by Rs 206.40 crore in 2024–25.

Short-term refinance through regional rural banks showed a steady upward trend over the same period. NABARD disbursed Rs 200 crore in 2020–21, which rose to Rs 225.58 crore in 2021–22 and Rs 325 crore in 2022–23. This further increased to Rs 372 crore in 2023–24 and Rs 561.70 crore in 2024–25.

The government said long-term refinance was largely channelled through commercial banks and regional rural banks for agriculture, allied activities and rural infrastructure projects, while short-term refinance was aimed at meeting seasonal credit requirements of farmers and rural borrowers.

It added that NABARD operates several dedicated funds, including the Rural Infrastructure Development Fund, Long Term Irrigation Fund, Warehouse Infrastructure Fund, Food Processing Fund and the Long Term Rural Credit Fund, to support irrigation, storage, food processing and other critical rural assets.

Under the Short-Term Refinance for Regional Rural Banks (STRRB), Jammu and Kashmir received a total of Rs 1,216.91 crore from NABARD between 2012–13 and 2024–25, reflecting a sustained, though uneven, flow of seasonal and working-capital credit to the Union Territory’s rural banking system over more than a decade.

In the first phase between 2012–13 and 2018–19, STRRB disbursements to Jammu and Kashmir amounted to Rs 502.50 crore. Annual allocations stood at Rs 60 crore in 2012–13 and rose to Rs 94 crore in 2013–14 and Rs 98.50 crore in 2014–15. This was followed by a moderation, with Rs 50 crore each disbursed in 2015–16, 2016–17 and 2017–18, before allocations increased again to Rs 100 crore in 2018–19.

In the subsequent period from 2019–20 to 2024–25, Jammu and Kashmir received a higher cumulative STRRB support of Rs 714.41 crore. NABARD disbursed Rs 84.83 crore in 2019–20, followed by Rs 50 crore in 2020–21 and Rs 75.58 crore in 2021–22. A significant expansion was recorded in 2022–23 and 2023–24, with allocations of Rs 200 crore each year, before moderating to Rs 104 crore in 2024–25.

The data indicates that while STRRB support to Jammu and Kashmir remained modest in the earlier years, allocations have strengthened in the post-2020 period, particularly after 2022–23, aligning with higher short-term credit requirements of regional rural banks catering to agriculture and allied activities in the Union Territory.

Under the Long Term Rural Credit Fund (LTRCF), Jammu and Kashmir received a cumulative Rs 264.01 crore from NABARD between 2014–15 and 2025–26, reflecting sustained, though relatively modest, long-term institutional support for rural infrastructure and development projects in the Union Territory.

In the first phase from 2014–15 to 2019–20, LTRCF disbursements to Jammu and Kashmir totalled Rs 104.19 crore. NABARD extended Rs 16.59 crore in 2014–15, followed by a rise to Rs 45.53 crore in 2015–16. This declined to Rs 23.24 crore in 2016–17, with no disbursement recorded in 2017–18. Allocations resumed at Rs 14.56 crore in 2018–19 and moderated further to Rs 4.27 crore in 2019–20.

In the subsequent period from 2020–21 to 2025–26, Jammu and Kashmir received a higher cumulative LTRCF support of Rs 159.82 crore. Disbursements stood at Rs 55.05 crore in 2020–21, before declining to Rs 29.75 crore in 2021–22 and Rs 14.47 crore in 2022–23. This was followed by Rs 20.67 crore in 2023–24 and an increase to Rs 32.52 crore in 2024–25, before moderating again to Rs 7.36 crore in 2025–26.

The data shows that while long-term rural credit support to Jammu and Kashmir under LTRCF has remained significantly lower than in larger states, allocations have continued across multiple years, aimed at financing irrigation, rural infrastructure, and other capital-intensive projects with longer gestation periods.

The government said these financing interventions are intended to improve credit availability, strengthen rural infrastructure and support sustainable livelihoods in Jammu and Kashmir.