Informatics Publishing Limited

Mrutyunjay Swain ¹, Mamata Swain ²

Affiliations
1 Agro-Economic Research Centre, Sardar Patel University, Vallabh Vidyanagar - 388 120, Gujarat, IN
2 School of Social Sciences, Ravenshaw University, Cuttack, Odisha, IN

Abstract

The paper assesses the major role played by the institutional support system such as government safety-nets, non-governmental and community based insurance mechanism in mitigating the drought risk and vulnerability in the region. Before assessing the effectiveness of the institutional supports, the paper critically analyses the factors that led to gradual refinement of drought management policies and programmes with special reference to western Odisha. The role played by Centre-State relationship and power equations in implementation of programmes for drought management has been critically examined. The study is based on secondary data analysis and the findings of a field survey on 139 households. The institutional support system to withstand drought in effective manner was found to be weak in the study region. Though a gradual improvement in drought management policies was observed and every major drought induced some qualitative improvement to the relief approach, the nature of Centre-State relationship and influence of pressure groups was found to play a key role in the sanction of funds and implementation of the development schemes for drought risk reduction. A large number of developmental programmes have been implemented in the drought-prone study region, but the benefits of these programmes reached very less proportion of rural households and these programmes have not sustained due to lack of long-term vision, poor quality of implementation and insufficient people's participation. Furthermore, the community based organisations were found to be more effective in earlier periods compared to the present.

Full Text

   

Mrutyunjay Swain ¹, Mamata Swain ²

Affiliations
1 Centre for Management in Agriculture, Indian Institute of Management, Vastrapur, Ahmedabad -380 015, IN
2 Graduate School of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Tsukuba, 305-8572, JP

Abstract

The paper analyzes the nature of contractual arrangements, interlinkages and imperfections observed in the rural credit market today in drought prone Bolangir district in western Orissa. It examines the differential access of different farmer categories to formal and informal sources of credit, their purpose of borrowing and mode of credit utilization. It tries to trace out the different types of impediments faced by the farmers in . Availing credit from institutional sources and suggests some innovative measures to improve their access to credit. The study reveals that the benefits of credit reforms hardly reached the target group. The poorest of the poor still approach the village moneylenders and traders for credit. Though majority of loans were originally sanctioned for cultivation and other productive purposes, significant diversion occurred towards current consumption. Cumbersome and time consuming banking procedure, failure to supply credit at t/uf time of need and rigid collateral requirement are the major hindrances causing poor access 10 formal credit institutions. The crop loss due to natural . Calamities and the unproductive utilization of borrowed funds resulted in rising default rate and delayed loan repayments. The study concludes that keeping in view the local socio-economic and ecological conditions, the rural credit policy needs to be revamped to make the rural credit market more efficient and responsive to the needs of the local population in the drought prone region.

Full Text