This step is being taken to create necessary financial infrastructure to transform rural areas into a big business hub.
Stressing that rural business goes far beyond agriculture business, he said, "We are taking steps to revamp and reorganise SFAC and make it truly a venture capital fund."
SFAC, which is in central sphere, envisages the provision of financial assistance as grants-in-aid for achieving the objective of generating income and jobs in the rural areas.
Speaking at a seminar on economic empowerment through Panchayats, jointly organised by ministry of Pachayati Raj and Confederation of Indian Industry, he said the united progressive alliance government was committed to bringing prosperity to rural India through agriculture as well as through business.
For making rural business go far beyond agri-business, he said, it was imperative not only to employ new technology but also harness raw materials available in rural areas.
"It is a popular misconception that what is good for big business is not good for rural business," he said, adding that rural business should be able to access the same tools that the big business employs.
Talking about "tremendous" opportunity in rural business, he said the country should strive to grow more food and expressed the confidence that India would be able to meet the agriculture credit target of Rs 1,05,000 crore (Rs 1050 billion) by the end of this fiscal.
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