Blue Print For Banks Disinvestment In 60 Days; Govt. Mulling Exempt SLR & CRR For Infra Projects: Dr. Sandhu

The Finance Ministry would unveil its detailed blue print, rolling out a comprehensive roadmap for the disinvestment of the public sector banks within next 60 days, empowering two of them to explore and access market for capital, disclosed Dr. Gurdial Singh Sandhu, Secretary (Department of Financial Services), Ministry of Finance.

Addressing members of the PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry during its Post Budget Interactive Session on Implications of Union Budget, Dr. Sandhu also disclosed that the government was at advance stage of talks to set up asset reconstruction companies for power and road sector with utilities such as NTPC and NHAI to enliven the stress projects on account of neglect as well as paucity of funds.

The Secretary, Department of Financial Services also indicated that projects in the infrastructure sector, languishing on account of funding crisis in past so many years would be in for execution with exempted SLR (statutory liquidity ratio) and CRR (cash reserve ratio) limits.

Elaborating on the subject of PSU banks disinvestment, Dr. Sandhu said that the banking sector which would have to comply with Basel-III norms by 2019, needed a capital, amounting Rs.2,40,000 crores in different phases and thus, the government has began the exercise to scale up on their disinvestments as currently its stake holdings in them stood very high. In addition, PSUs bank's consolidation drive is well within its current years' agenda.

This needed to be off loaded in the current scenario for their market recapitalization for which the decision would be taken in two months time and a minimum of two banks would have to go in for disinvestment in the current fiscal itself, he further added.

On the issue of assets reconstruction companies, Dr. Sandhu said that these would be set up as soon as the talks between the department concerned get conclusive as it was the priority of the government to bring out stressed projects, especially on infrastructure sector out of their current state and put them on to execution to ensure that the growth rate, India desires to achieve is accomplished as per the targets set in Budget 2014-15.

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