Chasing rainbows

Banks Board Bureau is conspicuous by its inaction

As the government readies its plans for Indradhanush 2.0, it is worth wondering about the functioning of the Banks Board Bureau (BBB). The BBB, an autonomous entity, was a key element of Indradhanush 1.0, a seven-point programme announced in August 2015 to revamp the functioning of the public sector banking system. The BBB’s ambitious mandate includes appointing bank chiefs and senior officers, suggesting mergers and acquisitions, advising banks on innovative financial methods to raise capital, and putting in place a governance and accountability framework for India’s 27 state-owned banks that account for almost 74 per cent of the country’s banking