e-Kisan Upaj Nidhi provides the farmers, an online platform to obtain post-harvest loans from banks by pledging their electronic Negotiable Warehouse Receipts (e-NWRs) for the stocks kept in Warehousing Development and Regulatory Authority (WDRA) registered warehouses. A joint endeavor of Department of Food and Public Distribution, WDRA, Department of Financial Services and NABARD, this gateway will improve ease of obtaining pledge finance by farmers against their stocks. Eligible Applicants Farmers having commodities stored in a WDRA registered warehouse. Farmer should have an e-NWR (electronic - Negotiable Warehouse Receipt) issued against such commodities. E-NWR should be issued by either of the two repositories namely, M/s. National E-Repository Limited (NERL) or CDSL Commodity Repository Limited (CCRL). An e-NWR has a time validity that is co-terminus with the validity of the commodity or withdrawal of the commodity fully from the warehouse, after which it expires. Maximum tenure is commensurate with the stated shelf life of the commodity or date of validity of the e-NWR in any case not exceeding 12 months. Benefits to farmers Minimum and maximum Loan is decided as per individual bank rules. In case of SBI, for agricultural loans, minimum amount is Rs 1 lakh & Maximum loan amount that can be availed under the scheme is Rs 75 lakhs. The margin requirement is generally 25% against an e-NWR. Rate of interest in loans Kisan Credit Card (KCC) having farmers can avail pledge loans against e-NWRs at the rate of 7% p.a. for a period of 6 months. Rate of Interest differs from bank to banks For Loans below Rs 50.00 lakhs- For tenor upto 6 months: Upto 3.00 lakhs-7% (subject to subvention available from GOI upto 6 months for small and marginal farmers only) else 6 months MCLR + 0.80% p.a. Above ₹3.00 lakhs to Rs 50.00 lakhs- 6 months MCLR + 0.80% р.а. For tenor above 6 months: 1-year MCLR + 0.80% p.a. For Loans Rs 50.00 lakhs and above- CRA based pricing. The platform will boost post-harvest pledge financing for farmers. This will provide them sufficient liquidity and help them defer sale of theirharvested produce to a more opportune time when it could fetch better prices. Thus, distress sale can be reduced. Reduces the turnaround time for pledge loans through seamless transfer of data. Banks onboarded on the platform will provide a choice to farmers in terms of rate of interest, loan amount, etc. Farmer can choose the best option available. How to use The farmer will first have to register himself with his repository account details issued to him by the repository, authorized by WDRA in the Jan Samarth portal. Farmers to register/apply on JanSamarth portal using the same mobile number as registered with the repositories (NERL / CCRL). The gateway will automatically authenticate these details through electronically integrated data bases of UIDAI, CBDT, Repository, etc. The Rule engine of portal also examines the farmer credit details like CIBIL score, etc. The Rule engine then provides the farmer, details of loans offered by banks. Once the farmer chooses a bank’s offer, the portal provides a digital in-principle approval for the loan. The farmer can go to the bank to complete documentation and to get the amount disbursed. Source : Warehousing Development and Regulatory Authority