INTRODUCTION

Provision of timely and adequate credit has been one of the major challenges for banks in India in dispensation of agricultural and rural credit to the farmers. Constant innovation is required in order to achieve the aim. Agricultural credit cards are not a new concept in the field of agricultural banking in India. The scheme had already been introduced in a number of public sector banks in a few states much earlier. These schemes were niche-marketed and were exclusively preserved for the privileged class of farmers and the small and marginal farmers did not have much access to them.
Similarly cash credit facilities were being extended by several public sector banks and cooperative banks to farmers with the view to improving their access to credit. Again this scheme was used only selectively. The KCC scheme was started by the
Government of India (GOI) in consultation with the RBI (Reserve Bank of India) and NABARD (National Bank for Agricultural and Rural Development) 1998-99 to join the features of both these schemes and to overcome their shortcomings.