17 Tripura bank officials in Dhaka to learn micro finance management

Agartala, Mar 16 (UNI) In a bid to accelerate the fund flow and credit facilities to the lower income group in the Northeastern region, a Tripura-based NGO has sent 17 officials from rural banks and other financial institutions (FI) to Bangladesh to garner knowledge about micro-finance management.

The first batch comprises the officials of NABARD, Tripura State Co-operative Bank, Co-operative and Rural Development Bank, Tripura Gramin Bank, National Rural Health Mission and state Rural Development departemnt, which already reached Dhaka by bus from Agartala yesterday. Later, the second batch would follow from Assam.

ARPAN president Dr S K Dhar said the programme - International Exposure Visit on Micro Finance to Bangladesh - was organised to teach the bank and FI officials about micro finance and its management and to motivate them to replicate the successful rural credit model of Bangladesh for the poorest sections of the Northeast.

''Even though Bangladesh is smaller than India in terms of size and economy, the country has been well acclaimed for its Gramin Bank concept and micro finance management as well as micro credit system and the main aim of the programme to facilitate rural masses,'' Dr Dhar underlined.

He pointed out that the team was led by the secretary of the organisation Jayanta Choudhury, who was also a rural development professional. The team would study the ASA, BRAC and SEWA Bank model under the guidance of IDEA of Dhaka in the five-day trip.

The second team from Assam is scheduled to leave for Bangladesh on March 21 and subsequently other states in the Northeast would participate in the study venture, Dr Dhar said.

He also said the commercialisation of banks and FIs in India had been supporting the comparatively stronger section of the society and virtually the weaker section of the society did not reap the benefits equally. As a result, the gap between the rich and poor had gradually become wider, which triggered social unrest.

Considering the strategic disparity of the bankers ARPAN initiated the project with the support of NABARD and Northeastern Council, Dr Dhar maintained.

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