NABARD would bring five lakh farmers under its Joint Liability Group scheme on the lines of SHGs to enable small and marginal farmers across the country get financial credit for sustaining agricultural activities, a top NABARD executive said today.

As a model, NABARD has already enrolled 30,000 farmers under JLG, and helped them get loans from banks to buy various agricultural inputs, including implements like power tilling, Umesh Chandra Sarangi, chairman, NABARD told reporters here.

Sarangi, here to launch a pilot project on 'Augmenting Productivity of Lead Crops,' in collaboration with Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU), said he planned to enrol one lakh farmers in JLG this year.

On modalities, he said the JLG comprises five to seven members, having joint liability for the loans, one standing guarantee for the other. Since they are small and marginal farmers, they can jointly by a power tiller or tractor for use in their farms in rotation.

The scheme would help them increase production and also augment income, since 82 per cent of farmers in India are small and marginal holders, he said.

Earlier launching the project, Sarangi said scientists and banks should ensure appropriate convergence of technology, credit and marketing for the benefit of farmers.

He also called for efforts to bridge the gap between technoloy generation and adoption, since there was an undue delay in technology reaching farm fields.