Mumbai: Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday said state-run banks have been asked to reach out to every district to expand lending to boost demand in the economy.
Addressing the media in the financial capital, Sitharaman said, “This year also there will be credit outreach in every district of the country”.
“To keep up with the momentum of the incentives we have given, we have also asked banks to go out and give to those who want to borrow from them,” he said.
Sitharaman also said that she has requested public sector banks to interact with export promotion agencies as well as chambers of commerce and industry at various sectoral levels so that the needs of exporters are met in a timely manner.
Stating that today the nature of banking is also changing, the Finance Minister said: “We also see from industry inputs that people are able to raise finance outside the banking system as well. After several decades, independent India has relied only through banks for the money that businesses want. “
“Now, the industry itself admits that they have avenues outside the banks. Even our banks have raised revenue from the markets,” ANI quoted Sitharaman as saying.
He further said that current account savings account deposits are “accumulating” in eastern states.
“Banks should facilitate maximum credit expansion in that area. Hence, credit flow can be better promoted for business development in that area,” she said.
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This step has been taken at a time when most of the lenders are already seeing a rise in bad loans.
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