Large Area Multipurpose Societies (LAMPS) Scheme

The multi-purpose cooperative society was started by the Agricultural Department of the Reserve Bank of India. With the endorsement of Co-operative Planning Committee, the Multi-purpose societies were provided with finance for carrying out agricultural operations. The Primary Agricultural Co-operative Societies for Tribal Areas in many states started to organise Large Area Multi-Purpose Societies (LAMPS) to benefit the tribal community in rural and semi-urban areas. The Ministry of Tribal Welfare has been elevating lives of thousands of tribal women and their families through LAMPS in West Bengal.

Objectives of LAMPS

The LAMPS is the flagship scheme of NSTFDC and Adhivasi Mahila Sashakt Yojna (AMSY) and its core objective is to encourage the tribal women to enhance their financial status by carrying out livelihood activities. Its other objectives are as follows:

To provide interest-free short-term loans or agricultural credit to tribal members for farming and agriculture.
To supply the necessary agricultural materials like seeds, fertilizers, pesticides at subsidised prices.
To provide financial assistance for the purchase of farm animals and cattle like pigs, sheep and plough bullocks with subsidised prices.
A free-of-cost supply of small agricultural machinery for better agricultural purposes.
To guide, educate and encourage the marketing of the agricultural products.
To provide consumption loan whenever the farmer needs with certain loan limit range.
To guide the landless agricultural farmers in collecting the minor forest products in order to provide seasonal employment.
To buy, sell and market the products that are acquired from the forests as minor products.
To assist the tribes with limited loans for Integrated Shopping Programme (ISP) to start small shops in villages as a separate aspect of LAMP.
To organise and encourage other livelihood activities to add and improve the social standard of all tribal members.