Published Paper Details:

Inadequacies in access to formal finance has led to the growth of microfinance in India. In India microfinance operates through two main channels viz. a) banking system through the SHGs under SHG-Bank Linkage Programme (SHG-BLP) and JLG bank lending programme and b) through Micro Finance Institutions (MFIs) lending through individual and group approach. SHG Bank linkage programme through microfinance in India is the world's largest microfinance programme in terms of its reach and scale of finance. Started as a pilot project in the year 1992 with the initiation of NABARD, now it has spread all over India covering 31 states and union territories and 641 districts by 31st March 2023. The objective of the research paper is to examine the progress of SHGBLP in terms of number of SHGs with savings and amount of savings, no. of SHGs availed loans (credit linked) and amount of loan disbursed and no. of SHGs with loan outstanding and amount of loan during 2013-14 to 2022-23. It also aims to explore the region wise progress of SHGBLP in terms of the amount of loan disbursed to SHG during the past ten years. It is found that SBLP has witnessed a significant progress during this time and brought considerable changes in the socio economic conditions of SHG members. It also found that the progress of SHG bank linkage programme is uneven across the regions in India.