FinMin to meet PSU bankers on April 26

Finance Ministry will hold annual performance review of public sector banks here on April 26 to evaluate various aspects including non-performing assets and financial inclusion.

The meeting will chaired by Financial Services Secretary SK Sharma instead of the usual practice of Finance Minister conducting bankers meet.

Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee is busy with ongoing assembly election in 5 states. The meeting will take stock of the financial performance of the banks during the financial year ended March 2011. However, the banks are yet to announce their annual result for FY11.

It would also dwell upon credit flow to the productive sectors, sources said.

According to sources, the Finance Ministry will deliberate on non-performing assets, agriculture loan, credit to infrastructure sector and matters related to human resources in the public sector banks.

In addition, the banks would also present their annual business target including net profit target, business mix and credit and deposit growth in the current fiscal.

Heads of public sector financial institutions like the Nabard, Sidbi, NHB, IIFCL and Exim Bank would also attend the meeting.

One of the key focus of the meeting would be on providing banking facility in unbanked areas. The Finance Ministry would seek information about the progress on financial inclusion front carried out by individual banks.

Finance Minister in the Budget speech earlier this year has already said that banks would provide banking facilities to habitations having a population of over 2000 by March, 2012.

The banks have identified about 73,000 such habitations for providing banking facilities using appropriate technologies, he had said.

"A multi-media campaign, Swabhimaan, has been launched to inform, educate and motivate people to open bank accounts. During this year, banks will cover 20,000 villages and remaining will be covered during FY12," he had said.

Last year, Finance Minister had conducted regional meeting which were attended by PSU bankers along with the concerned Chief Ministers.

This was with the objective to better understand state- wise flow of credit to the agriculture sector, credit-deposit ratio and loan to weaker section of society among others.

Source: Business Standard