MEASUREMENT OF MICROFINANCE ACCESS THROUGH COMPREHENSIVE INDEX: A STATE-WISE STUDY IN INDIA

Microfinance refers to financial services that are provided to low-income individuals or groups who naturally lack access to conventional banking services, including loans, savings, insurance, and fund transfers. Measuring microfinance access in India involves examining various indicators that reflect the availability, usage, and impact of microfinance services among the population, particularly in rural and underserved areas. Measuring microfinance access is an essential tool for assessing the effectiveness of microfinance programs and their impact on poverty reduction, financial inclusion and socio-economic development. An Index of Microfinance Access is a quantitative tool calculated to measure and evaluate the extent to which microfinance services are available and utilised by the target population in a specific region or country. Such an index can help stakeholders, including policymakers, financial institutions, and development agencies, to understand the effectiveness of microfinance initiatives and identify areas where improvements are needed. Here, we have followed the Laha & Kuri Model to construct a Comprehensive Index of Microfinance Access from an Indian perspective. In our Study, Measurement of Microfinance Access has been done based on three indicators: Indicator of Microfinance Penetration (MP1), Indicator of Microfinance Availability (MP2) and Indicator of Microfinance Usages (MP3), and, finally, we have constructed the Index of Microfinance Outreach (IMO). We have applied IMO to build the Rank of Indian states and identify their positions. However, we could not get any consistency over the states in four alternative years from 2014-2015, 2016-2017, 2018-2019 and 2021-2022. So, we cannot find out the trend over the 29 states of India. Previously, it has been observed that only Southern states like Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, and Kerala have dominated through Microfinance and Financial Inclusion. However, now the Eastern Part is awaking. As a result, Bihar, Odisha, West Bengal, and Jharkhand hold significant positions.


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