GUWAHATI, Dec 10 � Difficult terrain and infrastructural bottleneck have slowed the banking and financial development in the North East. This was disclosed by Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) Deputy Governor Subir Gokarn in an interview with this correspondent here today. To combat the problem, Gokarn has asked the banks to adopt modern technology suitable for the region.
He further added that poor network of banking branches and lack of awareness of banking services are also reasons that have impeded the growth of financial development in the North East. "The financial inclusion programme is aimed at covering more un-banked areas in the region," he said.
Throwing more lights on the initiatives taken by the RBI to gear up the banking system, the Deputy Governor revealed that under the Viability Gap Funding Scheme (VGFS), 36 new branches and three currency chests have been shortlisted for opening in five States of the North East. "The work is under process and three branches are expected to be opened in Meghalaya by January next. We aim to provide financial services to all villages having a population of over 2000 by March 2012," he informed.
Gokarn also underlined the need for rapid growth of credit in the North East. "The CD ratio is low because of non-presence of any major industry in the area. Moreover, some companies like oil and tea are availing credit from other areas instead of the region," he observed. To ensure adequate credit flow and to reduce wide disparity in the area, he called for increased investment of rural infrastructure development fund in the North East.
It may be recalled that CDR in the North East is below 40%.The low CD ratio in the region is attributed to the fact that most of the projects are being initiated by big corporate houses having registered offices elsewhere in the country.
Replying to a question on rising cases of counterfeit notes, the Deputy Governor said that the RBI had taken a slew of measures, including road shows and installation of machines to detect fake notes. "As this is a law and order issue, there should be coordination between police and the banking staff to contain the problem," he added.
The Deputy Governor arrived here today on a three-day visit to the State. During his stay, Gokarn will participate in financial inclusion programmes in different parts of the State.
GUWAHATI, Dec 10 � Difficult terrain and infrastructural bottleneck have slowed the banking and financial development in the North East. This was disclosed by Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) Deputy Governor Subir Gokarn in an interview with this correspondent here today. To combat the problem, Gokarn has asked the banks to adopt modern technology suitable for the region.
He further added that poor network of banking branches and lack of awareness of banking services are also reasons that have impeded the growth of financial development in the North East. "The financial inclusion programme is aimed at covering more un-banked areas in the region," he said.
Throwing more lights on the initiatives taken by the RBI to gear up the banking system, the Deputy Governor revealed that under the Viability Gap Funding Scheme (VGFS), 36 new branches and three currency chests have been shortlisted for opening in five States of the North East. "The work is under process and three branches are expected to be opened in Meghalaya by January next. We aim to provide financial services to all villages having a population of over 2000 by March 2012," he informed.
Gokarn also underlined the need for rapid growth of credit in the North East. "The CD ratio is low because of non-presence of any major industry in the area. Moreover, some companies like oil and tea are availing credit from other areas instead of the region," he observed. To ensure adequate credit flow and to reduce wide disparity in the area, he called for increased investment of rural infrastructure development fund in the North East.
It may be recalled that CDR in the North East is below 40%.The low CD ratio in the region is attributed to the fact that most of the projects are being initiated by big corporate houses having registered offices elsewhere in the country.
Replying to a question on rising cases of counterfeit notes, the Deputy Governor said that the RBI had taken a slew of measures, including road shows and installation of machines to detect fake notes. "As this is a law and order issue, there should be coordination between police and the banking staff to contain the problem," he added.
The Deputy Governor arrived here today on a three-day visit to the State. During his stay, Gokarn will participate in financial inclusion programmes in different parts of the State.
