Subsequent to the appointment by the Government of India, G R Chintala has taken over as the Chairman of National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) with effect from May 27, 2020. He was earlier the Managing Director of NABFINS, a subsidiary of NABARD headquartered in Bengaluru.Chintala, a Post Graduate from the prestigious Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi, joined NABARD as an officer and worked in various capacities at the Head Office, Mumbai and Regional Offices including Hyderabad, Chandigarh, Lucknow, Andaman & Nicobar Islands, New Delhi and Bengaluru. He was also the Vice President of Agri-Business Finance Limited, Hyderabad and the Director of Bankers Institute of Rural Development (BIRD), Lucknow.Chintala has handled several consultancy assignments including a significant one on “Roadmap for Amalgamation of Regional Rural Banks” in 2006 that led the way for the consolidation of 196 RRBs. He also undertook a consultancy assignment on “Efficacy of SGSY in meeting the aspirations of SCs/STs” commissioned by the Ministry of Rural Development, whose recommendations helped in launching National Rural Livelihood Mission (NRLM) throughout the country and phasing out the SGSY. Chintala had also successfully introduced the Producers Organisations model in Andaman & Nicobar Islands.He has visited over 20 countries including USA, China, European nations, Bolivia, Brazil, Kenya, Senegal, Indonesia, etc. for presenting papers and other assignments.Chintala’s rich and varied ground-level experience is expected to further deepen NABARD's engagement with agriculture and rural development issues, particularly, in the wake of the situation arising due to the recent outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.