Loan ‘melas’ are back: PSBs to hold credit meets in 400 districts, says FM

Stressed MSME assets will not be labelled NPAs till March 31, 2020

Public-sector banks (PSBs) will hold public meetings with borrowers for distributing loans in 400 districts of the country to boost demand ahead of the festive season, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced on Thursday.

In this, the banks will take help from non-banking financial companies (NBFCs). The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government will be following the footsteps of its predecessor, the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government, which had introduced the concept of “loan mela” to boost credit by directing banks to lend to people through public meetings.

Further, the government has told PSBs not to declare stressed assets of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) non-performing assets (NPAs) till March 31 next year. This will come as a major boost to the sector with its 65 million firms employing around 120 million workers — the biggest job creation after the agriculture sector. The government is also considering a special dispensation for the farm and MSME sectors

Shaktikanta Das promises to uphold RBI autonomy; will meet PSB heads today

Shaktikanta Das also said he would extensively consult various stakeholders, including the government, on key issues

Latest New:  Hours after assuming charge as governor of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Wednesday, Shaktikanta Das spelt out his priorities, asserting that he would uphold the autonomy, credibility and integrity of the “great institution”. Das also said he would extensively consult various stakeholders, including the government, on key issues.

The former bureaucrat has replaced Urjit Patel, who abruptly resigned on Monday after a long-drawn feud with the government over issues related to governance and the autonomy of the central bank. “I will try to uphold professionalism, core values, credibility and the autonomy of the Reserve Bank as an institution,” Das said in his first media interaction as RBI governor.|New RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das

Suggesting his focus on the banking sector, Das said more measures were needed to revive lenders, and that he would meet heads of public sector banks on Thursday. According to banking sources, there is no specific agenda for the meeting, but the concerns over PCA (prompt corrective action) banks, stressed loans and capital adequacy are likely to come up for discussion.

Asked if Deputy Governor Viral Acharya remained in office, Das said, “He is still very much with the RBI. (I) just had tea with him.” There have been rumours about Acharya, whose speech on October 22 had brought the government-RBI stand-off out in open, putting in his papers.

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