IMPACT OF AGRICULTURAL CREDIT BY SCHEDULED COMMERCIAL BANKS ON PRODUCTION OF VEGETABLES IN HIMACHAL PRADESH

Agriculture has been the chief source of livelihood in the maximum countries of the world for centuries. It has a vital role in the improvement of the life of the people in general and the development of the country at large About 89.96 per cent population is the rural population in Himachal where agriculture is the main source of income and employment. About 10 per cent of the total GSDP comes from agriculture and its allied sectors, and 62 per cent of the entire workforce of the State depends on it. The productivity of agriculture depends upon different inputs available for agriculture. At present, agriculture is in a state of transformation stage. Proper technology with adequate capital is required for it. Credit plays a vital role in it. Commercial banks are the main source of credit for agriculture in the state. The present paper is an attempt to see the effect of Agriculture credits provided by commercial banks on vegetable production in the state. To analyse the relationship between agricultural credit and vegetable production, the hypothesis is constructed that there is a significant difference between vegetable production and agricultural credit. The analysis reveals that the R-square is 0.851 indicating that the production of vegetables explains 85 per cent of the variability in agricultural credit. So increase in agricultural credit has a significant positive impact on the production of vegetables.