AKM Kamal Uddin Chowdhury
DHAKA, Feb 22, 2018 (BSS) – Palli Sanchay Bank (PSB) will open its branches in all upzilla headquarters to help poor and extreme-poor become self-reliant by providing them with collateral-free loans and brining their micro-savings in a revolving credit scheme.
“The bank has already started its operation in 406 upazilas and completed the preparation for opening its branches in rest of the upzilla headquarters by this March,” PSB Managing Director M Akber Hossain told BSS.
He said the bank, which is focused on bringing in disadvantaged people, especially women entrepreneurs under institutional financial services, has been providing collateral-free loans to rural poor since its inception in 2014.
“Unlike many other banks, PSB encourages and helps underprivileged people in generating income and building savings, and eventually use their savings in providing more loans under its revolving credit scheme,” the managing director of the state-owned bank said.
He said PSB provides financial and banking supports only to the members of the Village Development Organisation (VDO) who want to do income-generating activities under the ‘One House, One Farm’ project.
Currently, the bank has 13 lakh member families of 24,000 VDOs. The members have so far deposited about Taka 733.56 crore in their bank accounts while the bank disbursed loans of over Taka 200 crore among 1.40 lakh members for supporting their income-generating initiatives.
The loans are given for cow fattening, raising milking cows, manufacturing agro-industrial tools and spare parts, producing vegetable and spices and establishing agro-based small industries, cottage industries, fisheries and nursery.
The amount of loan depends on the investment plan of the borrowers. However, a small entrepreneur can get a loan of Taka 10,000 to 50,000; medium entrepreneur over Taka 50,000 to Taka 300,000 and special entrepreneur over Taka 300,000 to Taka 100,000. The rate of interest for all of the loans is 8.0 percent.
Besides, the VDO members can take benefit of the different saving products of PSB including general savings, special savings, social security savings, student savings, term deposits and rural pension scheme.
Apart from the financial support, the bank is also providing the VDO members with necessary training to improve their skills in poultry, fisheries, livestock, nursery and agriculture.
Sharing experience about getting services from the PSB, Delwara Begum, a woman of a village in Chouddagram upazila under Comilla district, said she successfully set up a business with getting a loan of Taka 10,000 from the bank to invest in her husband’s business.
“My husband is a dry fish seller. His income was not enough to meet all of the family expenses. So, I borrowed money from PSB under the ‘One House, One Farm’ project for my husband’s business,” said Delwara, a mother of three children.
With the loan, she and her husband expanded their business and eventually received additional loan of Taka 20,000 for further expansion.
“Now, our dry fish business is running well enough to meet the demand for everyday needs besides building a savings for future,” Delwara said.
“The bank is playing a vital role in alleviating poverty through maintaining the accounts and deposits of the members of the ‘One House, One Farm’ project,” former Sonali Bank managing director Pradip Kumar Dutta said.
The coordinator of the project in Chouddagram Upazila and PSB branch manager M Sakhawat Hossain said PSB is creating huge opportunities for the rural people to help them become self-reliant.