During a half-day long meeting with CEOs of public sector banks, he also asked them to help regional rural banks.Regional Rural Banks) in technology improvement.
After the meeting, Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying Minister Purushottam Rupala said that the Finance Minister reviewed the Kisan Credit Card (KCC) scheme and discussed how institutional credit can be made available to this segment.
“The meeting was chaired by the Finance Minister and the issue of Kisan Credit Cards to all those engaged in the fishing and dairy sector was discussed.
“In another session on Regional Rural Banks, it was decided that the sponsor bank should help them in digitization and technology improvement,” Bhagwat K Karad, Minister of State for Finance, said.
RRBs, which play a vital role in agricultural credit, are sponsored by Public Sector Banks (PSBs).
At present, the Center holds 50 per cent stake in RRBs, while 35 per cent and 15 per cent are held by the respective sponsor banks and state governments, respectively.
Sources said that of the 43 RRBs, nearly a third, especially from the north-eastern and eastern regions, are in deficit and need funds to meet the regulatory capital requirements of 9 per cent.
These banks were formed under the RRB Act, 1976 with the objective of providing loans and other facilities to small farmers, agricultural laborers and artisans in rural areas.
The Act was amended in 2015, allowing such banks to raise capital from sources other than the Centre, states and sponsor banks.
last month, Finance Ministry Had a full day meeting with CEOs of Public Sector Banks. Bankers were urged to sanction loans to productive sectors to accelerate the revival of an economy facing adversity, including the Russo-Ukraine War.
Banks were also asked to expedite resolution of non-performing assets (NPAs) and focus on recovery of bad loans. In the meeting held on June 20, the credit growth, asset quality and business growth plan of the banks were also taken stock of.