Bankers should focus on banking the unbanked, securing the unsecured and funding the unfunded, Union Minister of State for Finance Bhagwat Karad said today.
He was speaking at a review meeting on financial inclusion parameters of Western Maharashtra in Satara.
The minister further said that the PM Svanidhi scheme gave small loans to needy people without the condition of a collateral or a CIBIL score. He asked on this occasion to increase banking penetration in rural areas. He directed banks to reduce the waiting period for loan disbursement.
Karad added that even a developed state like Maharashtra has scope for increasing the number of bank branches in rural areas. Banks need to work towards that goal.
”In our objective towards becoming a five trillion dollar economy, the banking sector is going to be a big pillar,” said the minister. He further added that new voters should be incorporated into the banking sector by opening their bank accounts, and special camps should be arranged for the same. He suggested imbibing a competitive spirit among the banking sector for development of all.
He further added that with respect to schemes like Svanidhi, Maharashtra has performed better than the national average. However, there was scope for performance improvement in the MUDRA Scheme, where Maharashtra was lagging behind the national average.