National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) was set up in 1982 as an apex body to ________ .
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 3
The correct answer is Option (3) → Coordinate the activities of all institutions involved in the rural financing system.
Rural credit in India comes from several kinds of institutions: commercial banks, regional rural banks, cooperatives and land development banks. To bring them under one umbrella, the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) was set up in 1982 as the apex body that coordinates the activities of all institutions in the rural financing system.
Why the other options are incorrect
Option (1) Guarantee employment generation in rural areas. — Incorrect. Guaranteed rural employment is provided under schemes such as MGNREGA. NABARD is a bank for rural credit, not an employment scheme.
Option (2) Protect the income of the farmers by providing them direct cash benefits. — Incorrect. Direct cash support to farmers is given through government income-support schemes. NABARD coordinates credit institutions; it does not pay cash benefits.
Option (4) Coordinate the activities of all institutions involved in the urban financing system. — Incorrect. NABARD’s field is agriculture and rural development, as its name says; urban finance lies outside it.
NCERT (2025-26): “5.3 Credit and Marketing in Rural Areas … National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) was set up in 1982 as an apex body to coordinate the activities of all institutions involved in the rural financing system.… …The institutional structure of rural banking today consists of a set of multi-agency institutions, namely, commercial banks, regional rural banks (RRBs), cooperatives and land development banks.…” |