Financial Inclusion

The mission aims at achieving universal financial inclusion, which will go beyond providing basic banking services to all the poor households/SHGs/federations.

Access to finance at affordable price, desired amount and convenient repayment terms is critical for poverty reduction. Repeated doses of credit are essential to help poor to smoothen consumption and support investments in assets (acquisition, renewal and expansion). The poorest and vulnerable in several parts of the country still depend upon wages in kind. In times of food, health and other shocks, they borrow food or money from informal sources at usurious interest rates which is repayable in kind, labour and produce. The poor therefore need to come out of this debt trap as the first step out of poverty. The Reserve Bank of India defines financial inclusion as providing access to appropriate financial products and services to the most vulnerable group of the society in a fair, transparent and cost-effective manner by the mainstream financial institutions. Making poor the preferred clients of the banking system is core to the NRLM financial inclusion strategy. Mobilization of bank credit is crucial for accomplishing investment goals under NRLM.

Financial Inclusion under the NRLM includes:

• Provision of basic banking services
• Revolving Fund support to eligible SHGs
• Preparation of Micro Credit/Investment Plans
• SHG Credit Linkage with Banks
• Provision of Interest subvention