Consider the following statements:

1. In terms of short-term credit delivery to the agriculture sector, District Central Cooperative Banks (DCCBs) deliver more credit in comparison to Scheduled Commercial Banks and Regional Rural Banks.

2. One of the most important functions of DCCBs is to provide funds to the Primary Agricultural Credit Societies.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

The correct option is 2 only.

Explanation:

Analyzing Statement 1:
According to data on agricultural credit in India, Scheduled Commercial Banks (SCBs) play the most dominant role, accounting for the highest share (often over 70-75%) of the total short-term credit delivered to the agriculture sector. Cooperative Banks (including District Central Cooperative Banks) and Regional Rural Banks (RRBs) follow SCBs with a lower share of credit delivery. Therefore, Statement 1 is incorrect because DCCBs do not deliver more agricultural credit in comparison to Scheduled Commercial Banks.

Analyzing Statement 2:
In India, the cooperative credit structure for agriculture is organized in a three-tier system:
1. Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS) at the grass-roots (village) level.
2. District Central Cooperative Banks (DCCBs) at the district level.
3. State Cooperative Banks (StCBs) at the apex state level.
One of the primary and most important functions of DCCBs is to act as a financial intermediary that channels credit and provides refinance/funds to the Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS) operating within their respective districts. Therefore, Statement 2 is correct.

Consequently, only Statement 2 is correct.