Odisha CM asks private banks to expedite loans to poor people

Bhubaneswar: Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi Tuesday asked major private banks to extend more credit to poor people of the state under various welfare schemes.

Majhi said this while meeting representatives of ICICI, Axis and HDFC Banks and suggested that they should provide more loans to the poor in various welfare schemes, an official statement issued by the CMO said.

The chief minister issued such a suggestion after it was noticed that the performance of these banks in various welfare schemes such as agricultural loans, Pradhan Mantri Rozgar Shrusti Yojana, PM Swanidhi Yojana, Standup India Yojana, housing loans, education loans and export loans is very low.

Given their dismal performances, the state government has removed these banks from its empanelled List June 21, sources said.

The chief minister informed the private banks that under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the central government is implementing many poor welfare schemes. The government’s goal is to involve people in economic activities through loans and increase their income, he said.

The chief minister categorically told the representatives that the performance of these three banks in all these schemes is not at all satisfactory in Odisha.

Stating that the banks are a big medium in the government’s poor welfare schemes, Majhi suggested that all these banks should provide more loans to people under various schemes that benefit the poor.

The representatives of the banks accepted the chief minister’s suggestion and said that they are interested in providing loans to people in all these schemes and they assured the CM that this performance will improve soon, the release said.

The Principal Secretary of Finance Department, Shashawat Mishra, apprised the Chief Minister about the performance of these banks.

PTI

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