Increase agricultural credit to meet rural India's demands: Nirmala Sitharaman to banks
Ballari(PTI): Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has urged rural banks to increase agricultural credit disbursement to meet the growing demand of new rural India, while reviewing the business performance of Karnataka Grameena Bank (KaGB) here.
According to an official statement, Sitharaman chaired the meeting, attended by Department of Financial Services (DFS) Secretary M Nagaraju, NABARD Chairman Shaji K V, and other senior officials from the finance ministry on Thursday.
During the review, Sitharaman assessed key indicators, including credit growth, NPAs (Non-Performing Assets), financial inclusion, and the implementation of government-sponsored schemes by KaGB.
She advised the bank to increase its share in ground-level agriculture credit disbursement, with special focus on emerging areas of the economy.
Sitharaman also directed all stakeholders to take steps to realise the potential of allied agricultural activities in the region.
“KaGB and Canara Bank should work closely with state government departments to enhance credit disbursement to the MSME and allied sectors,” the statement said.
Referring to the rationalisation of GST rates, Sitharaman said it has opened new opportunities in rural areas due to rising consumption, indicating greater funding potential for banks.
She nudged rural banks to leverage this opportunity to meet credit requirements in semi-urban and rural regions.
Highlighting the capital needs of Farmer-Producer Organisations (FPOs), Sitharaman said, “While their capital requirements are often met by development financial institutions and government departments, their working capital needs should be fulfilled by banks.”
She emphasised that rural banks should upgrade products and services to suit the convenience and demand of FPOs, enabling both banks and FPOs to leverage resources for mutual benefit and sustainable rural growth.
Sitharaman further pointed out that many companies are relocating services, including data centres, from tier-1 to tier-2 and tier-3 cities, and insisted that rural banks focus on such emerging areas to strengthen their financial health.
She added that KaGB should focus on improving business operations to make the bank profitable and overcome challenges posed by stressed assets.
Sitharaman also advised KaGB and its sponsor bank to collaborate with panchayat and district-level committees to improve the screening of applications under government schemes such as PM-Vishwakarma and PMFME (Pradhan Mantri Formalisation of Micro Food Processing Enterprises).
She called on KaGB to expand its presence in the Kalyana Karnataka region by opening branches in underserved areas and to enhance operational efficiency by improving asset quality, adopting new technology, and strengthening customer service delivery, the statement said.
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Can't say when I'll return to India; legally barred from leaving UK: Mallya to Bombay HC
Mumbai (PTI): Fugitive businessman Vijay Mallya, facing multiple cases of fraud and money laundering, told the Bombay High Court on Wednesday that he cannot say when he will return to India as he is legally barred from leaving the UK.
In a statement submitted through his counsel Amit Desai to the high court, Mallya said he did not have an active passport after it was revoked and hence, he cannot give a definite date of return to India.
The statement was submitted after a bench of Chief Justice Shree Chandrashekhar and Justice Gautam Ankhad made it clear last week that it would not hear Mallya's plea against the order declaring a fugitive economic offender until he returns to India.
The court had then asked the former liquor to clarify whether or not he intended to return to India.
Mallya, based in the United Kingdom since 2016, has filed two petitions in the HC -- one challenging an order declaring him a fugitive economic offender and the other questioning the constitutional validity of the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act.
The 70-year-old liquor baron is accused of defaulting on multiple loan repayments of several thousand crores and facing money laundering charges.
The businessman, in his statement to HC, said he cannot give a definite date for his return as he does not have his Indian passport, which was revoked by the government in 2016, and also because there are orders of courts in England and Wales that prohibit him from leaving the country.
"Mallya is not permitted to leave or attempt to leave England and Wales or apply for or be in possession of any international travel document. In any event, the petitioner is unable to precisely state when he will return to India," Desai read out the statement in the court.
The senior counsel reiterated that Mallya's presence was not required in the country for the court to hear his pleas against the fugitive tag and the provisions of the Act.
"If he (Mallya) were to appear in India, then all these proceedings would be rendered irrelevant as the statute says that once the offender appears in the concerned court of law, then all these orders would be set aside," Desai told the court.
The bench directed the Union government to file its reply to Mallya's statement and posted the matter for further hearing next month.
Mallya was declared a Fugitive Economic Offender in January 2019 by a special court hearing cases under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
The businessman left India in March 2016.
