Jammu: The average monthly income of an agricultural household in Jammu and Kashmir from cultivation and other sources was estimated at Rs 18,918, while the average outstanding loan per agricultural household stood at Rs 30,435. The data was shared in a reply tabled in parliament of an unstarred question by MP S Jothimani, Minister of State for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Bhagirath Choudhary. The figures are based on the Situation Assessment Survey of Agricultural Households conducted by the National Statistical Office under the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation.
The minister said the latest available data pertains to the agricultural year July 2018 to June 2019, as the survey has not been conducted again since 2019. Consequently, the average monthly income and outstanding loan figures for agricultural households for the last five years are not available.
Jammu and Kashmir’s average agricultural household income of Rs 18,918 per month is significantly higher than the all-India average of Rs 10,218. The survey data tabled in the Lok Sabha also estimated that 31.9 per cent of agricultural households in Jammu and Kashmir had outstanding loans, with the average debt per agricultural household at Rs 30,435.
Providing national data on institutional credit, the minister said advances outstanding for agriculture and allied activities by Scheduled Commercial Banks increased from Rs 13,84,815 crore as on March 31, 2021 to Rs 23,67,024 crore as on March 31, 2025, according to the Reserve Bank of India.
The government said it is promoting institutional credit to farmers through measures such as Priority Sector Lending targets for banks, the Kisan Credit Card scheme, and the Modified Interest Subvention Scheme, under which short-term agricultural loans through KCC are available at a subsidised interest rate of 7 per cent, with incentives for prompt repayment reducing the effective interest rate to about 4 per cent.
The Centre also said several central sector and centrally sponsored schemes are being implemented to improve farmers’ income and agricultural productivity, including Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi, Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana, and Krishonnati Yojana, among others.
