Andhra Bank is pioneer in introducing many  innovative Rural Development measures since its inception. Andhra Bank Rural Development Trust (ABRDT) was established by the Bank in the year 1989, as a tribute to the first Prime Minister of India, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru on the eve of his birth Centenary. This Trust has been established to extend rural service beyond basic banking. The Trust was established  with a rationale of –Complementing the financial assistance provided by the Bank to rural people with technical assistance and livelihood enhancement.

• Take up various rural development measures which will eventually help in reducing the migration of rural people to urban areas.
• Carrying out  various rural development activities designed  for the purpose through the vast net work of Bank branches.

The objectives envisaged for the Trust are—

• To extend credit plus services to rural population.
• To educate and assist the farming community in agricultural improvement.
• To generate self employment opportunities in rural areas.
• To develop entrepreneurial abilities in rural unemployed youth.
• To organize human health and cattle health camps in rural areas.
• To organize Farmers Clubs, Youth Clubs and Children Clubs in rural areas.
• To promote education in rural areas by providing teaching aids to schools and to assist in adult education programs.
• To assist establishment of non-conventional sources of energy.
• To achieve sustainable rural development in its operational area.

ABRDT adopts multi pronged approach to achieve comprehensive rural development with focus on farmers, SHG women, unemployed youth, artisans etc., through the following activities -

1. Disseminating the cost-effective and latest area based agricultural techniques to farmers which enable them to get the best results from their farming, by utilizing the bank credit.
2. Identifying unemployed youth and motivating them to take up self employment; by offering them opportunities to acquire technical skills and to develop entrepreneurial abilities through training.
3. Providing them with business counseling and market guidance.
4. Post-training settlement assistance by coordinating with banks for credit linking.
5. Improving the skills of SHG women and orienting them towards income generating activities, thus transforming the micro Finance into Livelihood Finance.

Andhra Bank Rural Development Trust  has established the following Eleven (11) Institutes of Rural Development at various centers in the country :

I. Institutes established and managed exclusively by ABRDT :

 II. Institutes established under joint sponsorship with other voluntary organizations like GMR Varalakshmi Foundation (GMRVF) and  Swarna Bharat Trust (SBT)

All the Rural Institutes are equipped with adequate infrastructure to offer qualitative training and other related services. The following machinery and equipment enable them to impart various skills to the trainees effectively.

1. Training Equipment like  Sewing machines, Embroidery machines, Leaf Plate making machines, Coir Products making unit, Candle making dyes, Papad making machine etc.
2. Audio Visual Aidslike  Laptop, LCD Projector, VCD Player, Slide Projector, Overhead Projector, Television, Public Address System etc.
3. Agri Museum with educative charts and specimens etc. to disseminate knowledge on improved techniques in agriculture and allied activities.
4. Handicrafts Museum which displays various products made by the trainees.
5. Vermiculture Projectwhich is an important component of  Organic Farming to improve soil health; and this unit is aimed at motivating farmers towards sustainable and nature friendly agriculture.
6. Micro Irrigation Equipment like Drip Irrigation and Sprinkler Irrigation to educate and motivate farmers towards use of water saving irrigation techniques.
7. Solar Equipment like solar lighting, solar cookers etc. to demonstrate power saving methods and encourage the use of  renewable sources of energy.
8. Vehicle -  Jeep for enhancing mobility.

1. To & Fro conveyance
2. Boarding and Dormitory facilities
3. Services of experienced technicians/guest faculty
4. Training/ Course material
5. Library facility with a small collection of  relevant books.
6. Exposure visits to Live Projects/ Research Centers
7. Counseling and Escort services for establishing micro enterprises

All these facilities are provided to the trainees free of cost.

All the Rural Institutes undertake the following activities—

a)Training activities 
b) Escort services 
c) Settlement assistance