Mangaluru: The Shri Kshetra Dharmasthala Rural Development Project (SKDRDP) BC Trust, was awarded the ‘Best MSME Promoting Institution in the BC Model-2025 Award’ by the Chamber of Indian Micro Small & Medium Enterprises (CIMSME) for its achievements in the country’s banking service sector as a ‘business correspondent’ (BC).Among the institutions operating as BCs in the country, the SKDRDP BC Trust is the only one to receive this award. The award was presented in New Delhi by Piyush Goyal, Union minister of commerce andindustry. During the event, the contributions of this BC activity initiated by Dharmasthala Dharmadikari D Veerendra Heggade were praised by the minister. SKDRDP trustee D Surendra Kumar accepted the award. The jury included retired Supreme Court judge Deepak Verma, among others, a release stated.Considering that it is impractical for banks to open branches in every village to provide banking services, the ministry of finance and the country’s financial regulatory bodies have allowed BC services under the Financial Inclusion programme. Accordingly, banks have appointed the SKDRDP BC Trust as their business correspondent to provide services like the ‘SHG Bank Credit Linkage Programme’.The SKDRDP has facilitated loans at very low-interest rates from banks to self-help groups, thereby supporting the self-reliant lives of farmers, the poor, and women in rural areas, by creating millions of agricultural and self-employment activities. So far, financial assistance amounting to Rs 33,678 crore was provided through banks. In the last financial year, it provided loan facilities to around 4,41,000 people to undertake self-employment and economic activities, making a significant contribution to the development of the MSME sector, the release added.
