NABARD is responsible for regulating India’s rural banking system and hence, it is considered as a ‘development finance institution’. It works on three main areas- Finance, Development and Supervision. So, to enhance the rural development of the country, this bank provides and regulates credit to rural areas.

Moreover, to ensure that the rural development of the country happens smoothly, NABARD conducts a recruitment drive every year to recruit eligible candidates in Grade A and Grade B. Therefore, NABARD Grade A and Grade B exam is one of the most sought after exams in India. Thousands of candidates appear every year to realize their dream of becoming a NABARD Grade A or Grade B officer. Before applying for any such exam, it is really important for you to get familiarised with the organization first. Knowing the organization, its functions, and many other things motivates you to apply for this exam and also lets you analyze whether you will be a great fit for this organizational role or not.

In this blog, we will go over all the details regarding what NABARD is, its role, functions, and schemes. This article will be quite helpful from the exam point of view, so we encourage you to read it till the end.

What is NABARD?

• NABARD stands for National Bank For Agriculture and Rural Development.
• It is a government organization with its headquarters in Mumbai, Maharashtra, and was formed on July 12, 1982.
• The main motive behind the establishment of this organization was working towards ‘development assistance’ and ‘poverty reduction’.
• The term ‘development assistance’ refers to the cooperation or financial aid provided by the government and other agencies to contribute to the overall development of the ‘developing countries’. This makes NABARD a ‘development finance institution’.
• It works closely in the field of credit for agriculture and other activities in rural areas in India. In other words, NABARD can be referred to as the main bank/regulatory body for rural development and agriculture in the country.
• NABARD has a number of offices spread across the country, having several departments, with each of them assigned specific objectives and responsibilities.

Establishment of NABARD

• Before NABARD came into existence, there existed an organisation called Agricultural Refinance and Development Corporation which was formulated with the view of providing refinancing facilities.
• Earlier RBI was actively linked and involved with agricultural finance which gradually started becoming difficult. Moreover, the Agricultural Refinance and Development  Corporation (ARDC) was unable to fulfill the requirements of refinance.
• Therefore, RBI decided to distance itself from the agricultural finance and that’s when a committee was set up under Mr.Sivaraman who was its chairman. The recommendations given by Sivaraman committee were accepted and were followed for the formation of NABARD on 12th July 1982.
• The present Chairman of NABARD is: Dr. G.R. Chintala.

NABARD: Role & Functions

NABARD is the topmost development finance institution which deals with the development of rural areas of India. It is majorly responsible for sorting out the financial requirements of the rural India, especially the farmers. Some of the main responsibilities that NABARD is entrusted with are :

• NABARD provides refinance facility to the agricultural sector.
• It deals with the matters concerned with ‘policy, planning and operations’ in the agricultural sector and other developmental activities in rural India.
• It also takes care of the development of cottage industries, village industries, small scale industries and other rural industries.
• It also refinances the institutions that provide financial aid to the rural areas.
• It is also involved in training the institutions that are working towards the upliftment of the rural areas.
• It is also responsible for the implementation of the programmes aimed at rural development.
• Since NABARD is responsible for coordinating all the finance activities in the rural areas, it also has to stay in constant touch with all the important institutions like the RBI, Central Government, State Government or any other institution that may be involved in the ongoing agriculture and rural development activities.
• Regulation and supervision of the RRBs is another important role of NABARD. It supervises State Cooperative Banks (SCBs), District Cooperative Central Banks (DCCBs), and Regional Rural Banks (RRBs).

NABARD: Refinance Facility

Refinance as the name suggests is a finance facility provided ‘again’ by an institution to a borrower. It is the substitution of an existing loan with another loan on lower interest rates and different terms. To support the rural areas, NABARD provides refinance facility to promote capital infusion in the agriculture sector, with a repayment period of five years. These terms and conditions may vary according to the state or country. NABARD also receives its refinance funds from the World Bank and Asian Development Bank.

• NABARD has set up the Rural Innovation Fund with the help of Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation.
• It has also initiated another scheme for banks which aims at rural development called Rural Infrastructure Development Fund (RIDF).
• Till now Rs 51,283 Crore has already been sanctioned for 2,44,651 projects.

NABARD Schemes

Apart from providing credit for agriculture and promoting rural development, NABARD is also responsible for circulating its various schemes through banks and other credit-lending institutions across India.

Given below are the interest rates (as of April 2022) offered by NABARD for refinancing to banks and other credit-lending institutions under the NABARD Scheme.

Please Note-

• The interest rates are subject to change at the sole discretion of NABARD and RBI. 
• Also, these interest rates do not include GST and Service tax.

Features of NABARD Scheme

• To build infrastructure in rural areas.
• Providing support through funding or refinancing.
• Prepare credit plans at the district level.
• To provide directions and support to the banking sector to achieve their credit targets.
• Supervising the functioning of Cooperative banks and RRBs.
• To implement government’s rural development schemes.
• Conceive new projects that encourage rural development of the country.
• Training and promoting handicraft artisans.

Loans & Funds under the NABARD Scheme

Direct Finance Schemes

• Loans for Food Parks and Food Processing Units in Designated Food Parks
• Loans to Warehouses, Cold Storage, and Cold Chain Infrastructure
• Credit Facilities to Marketing Federations
• Rural Infrastructure Development Fund
• Direct Refinance to Cooperative Banks
• Supporting Producer Organisations
• Alternative Investment Funds
• Long Term Irrigation Fund
• Pradhan Mantri Aawas Yojana – Grameen (PMAY-G)
• Swachh Bharat Mission-Gramin (SBM-G)
• Micro Irrigation Fund

Refinance Schemes

• Short Term Refinance
• Long Term Refinance
• Eligible schemes for Refinance under Off Farm Sector

Schemes for Farmers

• Producers Organisation Development Fund (PODF)
• Watershed Development Programme
• Tribal Development Programme
• Dairy Entrepreneurship Development Scheme
• Capital Investment Subsidy Scheme for Commercial Production Units for organic/ biological Inputs
• Agriclinic and Agribusiness Centres Scheme
• National Livestock Mission
• GSS – Ensuring End Use of Subsidy Released
• Interest Subvention Scheme
• New Agricultural Marketing Infrastructure
• Formulation of Special Long Term Refinance Schemes

Off-Farm Sector Schemes

• Credit Linked Capital Subsidy Scheme
• NRLM / NULM (Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana)
• Weavers Package

Study with ixamBee for NABARD

NABARD Online Courses

The NABARD Grade A 2024 Recruitment is coming to an end as its interview process is going to start soon. Similarly, the NABARD Grade B Recruitment is yet to begin as well, so aspirants can look forward to the release of the recruitment notifications for both Grade A and B. You should be aware that in 2025, NABARD will release its NABARD Grade A and Grade B Notification at the desired time. It is better if you start preparing for it in advance. Therefore, to help you realize your goal of becoming a part of this prestigious organization, ixamBee is providing the NABARD Grade A Online Course and NABARD Grade B Online Course. Both these courses have been curated for you by our experts, who have first-hand experience in this field.

NABARD Mock Tests

Furthermore, we also encourage you to take the NABARD Grade A and Grade B Mock Tests. This will enable you stay updated with the latest question trend. Moreover, you will give you a clear picture of your exam preparation and performance.

We wish you the best always!!

ixamBee specializes in providing expert guidance and resources for banking exams 2024, ensuring that you are well-prepared for the Upcoming Bank Exams like RBI Grade B, NABARD Grade B, IBPS SO, and more. Our courses align with the bank exam calendar 2024, covering all the essential topics. With a focus on the upcoming bank jobs, our  Previous Year Papers, BeePedia, SSC CGL, SSC CHSL, SSC MTS and other Mock Tests are designed to help you excel in upcoming banking exams.  

Also Read:

Qualifying for NABARD 2025: 5 Expert Tips to Excel in the Exam

Preparation Strategy for NABARD GRADE A  Prelims Exam

How to Study ARD and ESI for NABARD IT and Finance Exam

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In this article, we will discuss the Kurukshetra magazine. This magazine is important for the Agriculture and Rural Development (ARD) and Economic and Social Issues (ESI) sections of the NABARD Grade A syllabus. It is important because ARD and ESI topics are always assessed from the point of view of Rural Development. 

Kurukshetra magazine

The Kurukshetra magazine is issued by the Ministry of Rural Development. In this article, we are going to discuss the March 2021 issue as it was released after this year’s Union/ Federal budget. You can learn more about the Union Budget 2021-22 here. Kurukshetra magazine is a monthly publication that presents the government’s perspective on various issues and what is the action plan of the government. It is published both in English and Hindi.

Budget for farmers 2021

• SVAMITVA: SVAMITVA is a Centre scheme that was launched on National Panchayat Day, April 24, 2020, and is now re-launched for the whole country this year. Through this scheme, the Government issues property cards to landowners. This will allow them to derive benefits from government schemes such as PM Kisan Samman Nidhi (launched in December 2018). The scheme will be implemented in phases. The first phase is between 2020-24 during which the government aims to cover 6.62 lakh villages. 
• Operation Greens (TOP to TOTAL): The scheme will be extended to 22 perishable items (such as vegetables) for which infrastructural development will be undertaken. 
• 1000 mandis will be integrated with Electronic National Agriculture Market (eNAM) this year. eNAM is a cross-country scheme, launched in April 2016, to link mandis to the Agricultural Produce Marketing Committee (APMC) board and establish a unified market for agricultural supplies. 
• Earlier, Kisan Credit Card Yojana benefits were aimed at crop production only. Now, the agricultural credit target has been increased to ₹ 16.5 lakh crore rupees to ensure credit flows to Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries farming. 
• Rural Infrastructure Development Fund has been enhanced to ₹40,000 Cr. from ₹ 29,848 Cr.
• The budget for the micro-irrigation Fund has been doubled to ₹ 10,000 Cr. 

Budget Allocations across Agriculture and Allied Ministries

The Ministry of Agriculture and Farmer welfare has two departments within it. The budget is split between the Department of Agriculture, Cooperation and Farmer’ Welfare and Department of Agriculture Research & Education. Similarly, the budgetary allocation to the Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying is divided between the Department of Fisheries and Department of Animal Husbandry & Dairying.

Candidates must make note as to the funding for which ministry/department has been increased or decreased. Understanding the allocation of funds helps us to know how the government is spending on its different schemes.

Healthy People Healthy Nation

This section covers the grants the government has made in the health sector. In a time of a pandemic such as this, the importance of the health sector has become manifold. 

• The health and well-being union budget has been raised by 137%. The budget has been raised from ₹ 94,452 Cr to ₹ 2,23,046 Cr. 
• The COVID Suraksha Mission: ₹ 900 Cr have been allotted to the development and testing of indigenous vaccines. It is a part of the ongoing Atmanirbhar Bharat Mission. 
• ₹ 35000 Cr have been provisioned for COVID-19 vaccines
• Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PM JAY): Approximately ₹10.74 Cr have been assigned to this scheme to cover hospitalization-related expenses for the poorest families. There is a budget of ₹ 5 lakh per family. 
• Mission Poshan 2.0: Poshan Abhiyan and Supplementary Nutrition Programme have been merged to strengthen nutritional content delivery, outreach and outcome. The scheme will also cover programs like Child Development Services, Angandbadi services, Poshan Abhiyan, Scheme for Adolescent Girls and National Creche Scheme. 

Atmanirbhar Women

• Atma Nirbhar Swastha Bharat Yojana: To ensure the participation of skilled and semi-skilled women both from rural and urban areas in the health sector. 

• Mission Vatsalya that provides Child Protection and Child Welfare services have been allotted ₹ 900 Cr. 
• ₹ 3109 Cr have been granted to Mission Shakti for the protection and empowerment of women. The mission has two main components
  

1. SAMBHAL: Mahila Police Volunteer, women’s helpline, widow’s home and such. 
2. SAMARTHYA: (for capacity development) Beti Bachao Beti Padhao, Creche, PM Matru Vandana Yojana and such
   

•  Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana: To provide LPG connections to one crore more women beneficiaries.
• Jal Jeevan Mission Urban: To provide tap water supply to 4378 urban local bodies. The Mission also aims to ensure liquid waste management in 500 AMRUT cities. The schemes will be implemented over 5 years for which ₹ 2,87,000 Cr have been outlaid. 

Roads and Highways Infrastructure

• ₹ 1,18,101 Cr granted to the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways. This is the highest allotment for this budget. 

Bharatmala Pariyojana: This is a centrally-sponsored Road and Highways undertaking. The total investment to build 83,677 km long new highways stands at ₹5.35 lakh crore. This is the single largest spending for a government road construction scheme.

Recapitalization of Public Sector Banks (PSBs)

• The government has proposed an allotment of ₹ 20,000 Cr to further strengthen the financial capacity of PSBs. 

Deposit Insurance: Government has raised the deposit insurance to ₹. 5 lakh from ₹. 1 lakh for bank customers.

Major Announcements for Agriculture and Allied Sector under the Aatma Nirbhar Bharat Abhiyaan. 

The highest allotment of ₹ 1 lakh Cr has been made for the Agriculture Infrastructure Fund. This fund will be used in infrastructure projects at farmgate and infrastructure points. Operation Greens which only covered tomatoes, onions and potatoes (TOP) will now cover all fruit and vegetables. 

Major Scheme-Based Allocations of Outlay (₹ in Cr)

This table illustrates the various financial allotments to the different welfare schemes run by the government. This budgetary division also reflects the government’s focus. The higher the allotment, the more the focus of the government. Similarly, you can compare the previous year’s allocation to understand the government’s focus on executing particular schemes. 

As we can see, the highest allotment of ₹ 73000 Cr has been given to the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Program (MGNREGA) this year. Understandably, candidates cannot remember all the schemes and all their financial awards, which is why candidates must remember the first couple of highest allocations and the lowest allocation for the year. Also, candidates must make note of the budgetary allocation for the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi as it is an important government program. Candidates must also make a note of the allocations that have either increased or decreased. 

As we learnt in this article, the Kurukshetra magazine is a very important touchstone in many ways. It not only keeps you up-to-date about the government’s activities and programs but also helps you understand how budgeting works. As an aspiring government employee, it will bode you well to keep tabs on the activities and spending of the government. If you feel you can learn better through audiovisual or multimedia-based instruction, subscribe to our YouTube Channel for preparation YouTube videos. You can find the YouTube video for this article here.

Want a headstart on your General Awareness preparation but don’t know where to begin? We’ve got you covered. You can find weekly updates on all aspects of general awareness on our BeePedia page. Moreover, these BeePedia updates are comprehensive and free and you can download them from the ixamBee website. BeePedia is also available in Hindi. 

Our new batch for NABARD Grade A preparation is starting as of June 1, 2021. If you are preparing to clear the NABARD Grade A examination, there is no time to lose! Visit our website to join our new batch.  You can also attempt our free mock tests here.

ixamBee has just launched a ‘Get Vaccinated, Get Rewarded‘ offer to provide flat 35% off to candidates who are preparing for competitive examinations and would like to buy any of our courses. To avail of this offer, all you have to do is upload a picture of yourself getting jabbed. Already been jabbed but no picture to show for it? Or haven’t taken the vaccine yet? Worry not! You can also upload a picture of any member from your family taking the vaccine to avail of the 35% discount.

So hurry up and start sending us your pictures and get a flat 35% off on the course of your choice. Stay Home, Stay Safe!

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Also read:

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NABARD Grade A – Exam Pattern

In this article, we learn about how to prepare Quant for NABARD Grade A. We will analyze the exam pattern, time given and the syllabi for Quant. We will also learn how to manage our time efficiently and some other tricks to ace the examination.

Time

The total time given to candidates is 2 hours. In these 2 hours or 120 minutes, candidates have to attempt a total of 200 questions. These 120 minutes are not divided section-wise. There is no sectional timing for the NABARD Grade A examination. Candidates must ensure that they manage their time well. It is always advisable that the candidates first attempt the section(s) they feel most confident about.

NABARD Grade A Prelims question paper

The prelims question paper has 7 sections. Of these 7, 4 sections are evaluated for 20 marks each. The remaining 3 sections are evaluated for 40 marks each. The division has been illustrated below. Some questions carry 1 mark each while some carry 2. As for negative marking, questions for 1 mark have a negative marking of 0.25 whereas questions carrying 2 marks have a negative marking of 0.50. There is no negative marking for questions that are not attempted at all.

NABARD Grade A cut-offs

Always remember, the cut-off is an indicative measure of the difficulty level of the examination. It has no relevance with the upcoming year’s cut-off. Your NABARD Grade A preparation should not revolve around the cut-off criteria.

As we can see, the cut-off for the past few years has been around 120. Cut-off may increase as competition is also increasing. When the paper is relatively easy, the cut-off marks are higher and vice-versa.Subject wise cut-off: Candidates must ensure that they obtain cut-off marks for all sections of the paper. Given below is a sectional cut-off table for NABARD Grade A 2020 Preliminary examination.

Like the overall cut-offs, sectional cut-offs are also raised or lowered depending on the level of assessment. For example, the cut-offs were higher in 2019 as the paper was easy. If you want to know more about the cut-off marks for 2020 and 2019 you can find them here.

Syllabus for NABARD Grade A: Quantitative Aptitude

Quantitative Aptitude is an essential part of all government competitive examinations in India. Through these questions, examiners gauge a candidate’s ability to think analytically and logically. Quant questions may be assessed in several ways. Given below are some of the important topics that candidates should focus on as a part of their Quantitative Aptitude preparation for NABARD Grade A preparation. 

• Number series
• Quadratic equations
• Simplifications/ approximation
• Surds and indices
• Di- with graphs
• Caselet DI- presented as passages
• Arithmetic
  From Arithmetic the following topics are important:
• Time & Distance
• Train/boat
• Time and work
• Ages
• Pipes and cisterns
• Percentage
• Profit and loss
• Simple and compound interest 
• Allegation 
• Average 
• Ratio 
• Partnership 
• Probability 
• Mensuration
• HCF/LCM & Number System- least important

NABARD Grade A/B Quant Breakup in past years

Study the table given below to understand how many questions are generally asked from which topic.

As we can analyze from the aforementioned table, on average most questions are asked from Data Interpretation. Questions on Age, Time & Work, Partnership and Allegation. Although no topic is to be ignored altogether, you must dedicate more time to practicing these topics that are tested every year.

Important Tips

• Data Interpretation is an important topic that is being assessed every year. Candidates must take a cue from this pattern and devote special attention to practicing DI questions
• Memorize multiplication tables up to 20
• Memorize squares of numbers up to 40 and cubes up to 20. 
• Understand and memorize tricks to calculate, multiply and add quickly to solve simplification questions swiftly and correctly. 
• Questions for 6-7 marks can be expected from Simplification, Series and Quadratic Equations. Devote 3-4 days to practicing each topic. 
• Arithmetic chapters are the most important here. Candidates stand the chance to one-up themselves against other candidates by scoring well on the arithmetic questions. Generally, examinees focus on the other subjects which are sure to be tested and do not devote enough time to arithmetic. If candidates want to truly stand out, they must devote adequate time to practicing arithmetic as it is a scoring topic and every mark makes a difference. 
• Also, the assessment level for arithmetic will be easy to moderate. So, candidates must touch upon all topics so that they can at least attempt it if an easy question is asked from one or more topics. 
• As mentioned before, candidates are given a total time of 120 minutes with no section-wise dedication. This is why speed matters the most. 
• Of the 7 sections of the NABARD Grade A Prelims paper, the candidates should attempt the GA, CA, ESI and ARD sections first as they can be solved quickly. Then attempt the section on English. 
• Lastly, attempt the questions on Quant and Reasoning as they are the most difficult and require the most amount of time. Candidates must save time on the other sections to use that time to solve Quant and Reasoning questions. 
• Candidates must ideally complete 1 QA or Reasoning question within 1 minute. 
• Following speed, accuracy is the next most important criterion to ace any examination. Answering quickly is important but answering correctly is more important. Marks are awarded based on the accuracy of your answer and not the speed at which you completed the same. 
• No guesswork should be done while answering MCQ questions. 
• To ensure the accuracy of your answers, you must analyze your work as you practice for your examinations.
• Practice is the only way to go for all the sections assessed in the NABARD Grade A Prelims. The more you practice, the more edge you will gain over other candidates. 
• Remember, practice makes a man perfect. 

Our new batch for NABARD Grade A preparation is starting as of June 1, 2021. If you are preparing to clear the NABARD Grade A examination, there is no time to lose! Visit our website to join our new batch. You can also attempt our free mock tests here.

ixamBee has just launched a ‘Get Vaccinated, Get Rewarded‘ offer to provide flat 35% off to candidates who are preparing for competitive examinations and would like to buy any of our courses. To avail of this offer, all you have to do is upload a picture of yourself getting jabbed. Already been jabbed but no picture to show for it? Or haven’t taken the vaccine yet? Worry not! You can also upload a picture of any member from your family taking the vaccine to avail of the 35% discount.

So, hurry up and start sending us your pictures and get a flat 35% off on the course of your choice. Stay Home, Stay Safe!

Got queries? Check out the details here.

Also read:

What to Prepare Current Agriculture for NABARD Grade A, FCI AGM Exam.

Introduction to Seed Science: Important Topic for NABARD Grade A and B, FCI AGM.

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