Accessibility of Rural credit among coconut farmers in Coimbatore District

India has a greater part of area, around 60.3 per cent land as agricultural land, according to World Bank, with 50 per cent population engaged in agricultural activities while over 70 per cent of the rural households depend on agriculture as their principal means of livelihood. Agriculture sector in India contributes 16 per cent - 18 per cent to GDP. In Tamil Nadu, agriculture is the most over riding sector in the economy. Tamil Nadu is the highest producer of bananas and coconuts in the whole country. The national output share of coconut is 29.1 per cent. The Present agricultural credit structure in India has several sources and agencies engaged in extending credit to the rural people. Some agencies are in the organized sector, some others are in the unorganized sector, Similarly, some agencies are engaged in providing credit directly to the farmers, others are engaged in indirect financing, i.e., through refinancing.