STATUS OF MICROFINANCE AND ITS DELIVERY MODELS IN INDIA

Microfinance has developed as dignified substitute for informal credit and acts as a powerful tool for poverty alleviation. Microfinance offers loans, deposit and insurance to poorest strata of society and low income households. Microfinance institutions and self help groups had contributed significantly towards the improvement of income level of poor people and their standard of living. There are different models of microfinance to serve the poor people like Grameen Bank model, Self Help Group bank linkage programme model, Microfinance Institution model, Bank correspondent model, and Bank partnership model. At present, self help group Bank Linkage programme model and the Micro Finance Institution model for delivery of Microfinance in India is working on large scale as compare to other models. Self help group Bank Linkage programme model is recognized as largest Micro finance programme all over the world in term of coverage. This paper attempts to focus on status of Microfinance and its delivery model prevailing in India.