Eastern, Northeastern states demand better credit flow

PATNA - Eastern and Northeastern states at a meeting with Finance Minister Pranab Mukharjee here Monday demanded accelerated flow of credit to unlock their development potential and fast-track the growth process.

“They raised serious concern over the poor credit-deposit ratio during the meeting,” an official said.

Mukharjee assured them that he would consider their suggestions to improve the credit-deposit ratio and widen the reach of the banking system in the states.

Official sources said the chief minister of Assam, Bihar, Meghalya and Nagaland and the finance minister of West Bengal attended the meeting, besides representatives of Orissa, Jharkhand, Sikkim, Mizoram and Arunachal Pradesh.

Mukharjee will also hold a meeting with the top officials of public sector banks and heads of financial institutions like the NABARD, SIDBI and the Exim Bank on the flow of credit to the agriculture sector and loan to weaker section of society.