NABARD’s potential-linked credit plan for Salem district released

The potential-linked credit plan (PLP) prepared by the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) for the year 2026–27 mentions the total credit projection for the district at ₹40,322.90 crore.

District Collector R. Brindha Devi released the PLP during the district-level bankers’ meeting held on Wednesday evening. The total credit projection for Salem district stands at ₹40,322.90 crore, with the agriculture sector receiving the highest allocation of ₹25,785.92 crore. The PLP serves as a strategic blueprint for financial institutions, policymakers, and stakeholders, providing insights into the credit potential for agriculture, MSMEs, infrastructure, and allied activities.

Releasing the document, the Collector directed the banks to allocate more funds towards medium- and long-term credit in agriculture, as there is good potential to promote farm mechanisation, innovative micro-irrigation systems, and the animal husbandry sector in the district. The Collector emphasised giving more focus to other priority sectors like education, housing, and renewable energy, and so on, for holistic development of the district.

S. Sheba Sangeetha, assistant general manager of NABARD, outlined the key points of PLP 2026-27 and indicated that the share in the PLP estimates for 2026-27 for the agriculture sector is 64%, with farm credit estimated at Rs. 25,127.83 crore. Keeping in view the recent policy initiatives of the Central government and the government of Tamil Nadu to push the MSME sector, an amount of ₹12,447.81 crore (31%) has been estimated for the district. PLP projection is around 10.8% more than the Annual Credit Plan target for financial year 2025-26, which can be attributed to the national priorities of the Central Government to scale up lending to the various sectors of the economy, she added.

B. Senthil Kumar, Lead District Manager (LDM), State Bank of India, said that PLP forms the basis for finalisation of the ACP of the district. He also indicated that based on the potential estimated in the PLP for the coming year, a background paper will be circulated by the lead bank, along with the block-wise/activity-wise potential identified in the plan. Banks will prepare their branch-level credit plans so as to finalize the block credit plans and then the district credit plan for the year 2026-27, he added.