(1) The National Bank may provide such financial assistance as it may consider necessary for promoting agriculture and rural development by--
(a) making loans and advances, by way of refinance, on such terms and conditions as the National Bank may think fit to impose, to a State land development bank or a State co-operative bank or a scheduled bank or any other financial institution approved by the Reserve Bank in this behalf, and also rescheduling the payment of such loans and advances:
Provided that the maximum period for which any such loan or advance may be granted, whether originally or by rescheduling the payment thereof, shall not exceed twenty-five years;
(b) purchasing or selling, or subscribing to the bonds or debentures issued by any bank or institution referred to in clause (a) and repayable within a period not exceeding twenty-five years from the dates on which they are issued;
(c) making loans and advances on such terms and conditions as the National Bank may think fit to impose, to a State co-operative bank or a scheduled bank for the purpose of enabling such bank to make loans or advances to artisans, [village and cottage industries, micro-enterprises, small enterprises and medium enterprises and those engaged in the field of handicrafts, handlooms] and other rural crafts and also rescheduling the payment of such loans and advances:
Provided that the maximum period for which any such loan or advance may be granted, whether originally or by rescheduling the payment thereof, shall not exceed twenty-five years;
(d) making, where it is considered necessary so to do in connection with any financial assistance under clause (a) or clause (b) or clause (c) to a State land development bank or a State co-operative bank or a scheduled bank, loans and advances repayable on demand or on the expiry of a fixed period not exceeding eighteen months, by way of refinance [or otherwise] to such bank and also rescheduling the payment of such loans and advances for such period as the National Bank may deem fit.
(2) The provisions of this section shall be in addition to, and not in derogation of, the provisions of section 21 and section 24.