Lending To Industrial Sector Slides To Rs 18706 Crore

Seven industry groups posted a negative credit growth in fiscal 2001. They are mining (down by Rs 92 crore), jute textiles (Rs 50 crore), other textiles (Rs 991 crore), vegetable oils and vanaspati (Rs 82 crore), tobacco and tobacco products (Rs 30 crore), petrochemicals (Rs 70 crore) and drugs and pharmaceuticals (Rs 304 crore).

Total credit extended to the industrial sector fell to Rs 18,706 crore during 2000-01 from Rs 21,134 crore during the earlier fiscal. Industrial credit as a percentage of net bank credit decreased to Rs 46.8 per cent from 50.3 per cent in 1999-2000.

Infrastructure attracted the highest amount of industrial credit in 2000-01. 21.9 per cent (Rs 4,106 crore) of the Rs 18,706 crore credit offtake during the year was deployed in the sector.

Credit extended to the group during the fiscal was more than three times the previous financial year's offtake of Rs 1,298 crore. Petroleum (13.91 per cent or Rs 2,603 crore), cotton textiles (8.35 per cent or Rs 1,562 crore) and gems and jewelry (6.28 per cent or Rs 1,175 crore) were the other toppers in terms of credit offtake.

Within the infrastructure industry, lending to the telecommunications sector improved considerably -- Rs 1,652 crore in 2000-01 from (-) Rs 281 crore in the previous financial year.

The power sector bagged Rs 1,957 crore (Rs 1,180 crore). The roads and port sector received Rs 497 crore (Rs 399 crore).

Lending to the priority sector went up to Rs 22,587 crore during 2000-01 from Rs 17,216 crore during the previous fiscal. Within the priority sector, advances to agriculture during the last fiscal was Rs 7,541 crore, compared with Rs 4,747 crore in the previous financial year. Lending to the small-scale industries fell to Rs 3,188 crore (Rs 4,331 crore). Other priority sector advances increased to Rs 11,858 crore (Rs 8,158 crore).