NABARD Infrastructure Development Assistance (NIDA)
NIDA is a new line of credit support for funding rural infrastructure projects. NIDA is designed to fund State owned institutions/ corporations on both on-budget as well as off-budget for creation of rural infrastructure outside the ambit of RIDF borrowing. The assistance under NIDA is available on flexible interest terms with longer repayment period upto 15 years ( 2-4 years repayment holiday).
Objectives of the NIDA Programme
NABARD is deeply committed to rural development, and infrastructure is an integral part of this development. Traditionally, NABARD has been closely working with State Governments through RIDF to fund various infrastructure initiatives. However, this channel for creation of rural infrastructure faces certain issues:
- Borrowing power of State Governments is limited under Article 293, thus limiting the off-take of RIDF
- Prioritizing infrastructure to be created through RIDF funds is often dictated by the political environment
