Banks yet to raise credit flow in northeast: Tripura minister

Despite the Reserve Bank of India asking nationalised banks to improve their credit flows to the industry-starved northeast, the credit-deposit ratio in the region has remained static during the past many years, Tripura Finance Minister Badal Chaudhury said here Tuesday.

He said the credit-deposit ratio of the northeastern region is 34 percent against the national average of 78 percent.

"RBI governor D. Subbarao during his recent visit to Tripura had asked the banks to introduce bankable schemes and open financial literacy and credit counselling centres in the northeast to improve the credit flows to the region. But the banks are yet to take suitable steps in this regard," Chaudhury told the state assembly Tuesday.

"Tripura and other state governments in the region have been demanding that the RBI and the central government take appropriate measures to improve the C-D ratio, providing advances and financial support to the people of the region."

"The RBI chief had assured us to increase the C-D ratio up to 40 percent by this time. But the situation in the economically poor region has remained unchanged," the minister said.

He complained that the credit flow to the northeastern region from nationalised banks was meagre.

"It is unfortunate that despite intervention from the union finance ministry, the credit-deposit ratio for commercial banks in the region has remained at a level of around 34 percent over the past many years. This should be raised to at least 50 percent," Chowdhury said.

"During the last fiscal (2012-13), Rs.13,560 crore had been deposited in the nationalised and private banks, but the banks have given loans only of Rs.4,532 crore in the year."

The Congress legislators led by Leader of Opposition Ratan Lal Nath blamed the Left Front government in Tripura for not increasing credit flow in the state.

"The state government's failure to set up big industrial units and lack of private investments caused the poor C-D ratio in Tripura," Nath told the house.