Finance Ministry asked public sector banks to get suggestions from branches to achieve $5 trillion economy

The finance ministry has asked PSBs to start a consultation process with the branch officers in order to get ideas to achieve a $5 trillion economy in the coming five years.

The suggestions emanating from a month-long campaign is said to start from this Saturday. It is going to be used as inputs for the preparation of a road map for the future growth of the banking sector.

As per the interaction between the ministry and the heads of the public sector banks:

“It will be a bottom-up consultative process from the branch level onwards which will involve discussions at the branch or regional level, state level, and national level.”

The consultation process is targeted at aligning the banking sector with national priorities, inculcating a sense of involvement and stimulating ideas among bankers at the branch level.

The campaign envisages not only performance review but also synchronisation of banking with specific region based problems and their growth potential.

It also seeks to find out the role of PSBs as active partners in the Indian growth story in the coming five years. The country has set a target of achieving a $5 trillion economy by 2024-25.

It is also going to look for a solution to promote ease of living making banks more responsive to customers. Not just that but they are also going to look into areas such as data analytics and cybersecurity.

They will also put the focus on raising credit offtake in order to support economic growth credit support to infrastructure and role of the banking sector in increasing farmers’ water conservation and income.

In addition, there will also put the focus on pushing the digital economy and financial inclusion.

The consultative process will be divided into three main stages, the first being at the branch or regional level, followed by the state level.

The campaign is started during a time when the economy is witnessing a tough situation and it has slowed to a 5 year low of 6.8%.

There are bad signs showing that slowdown may be serious. Currently, the automobile sector is probably facing the worst kind of crisis in two decades. According to reports thousands of jobs are at stake in the auto and ancillary industry.

In the real estate sector, the number of unsold homes has increased in numbers. Fast-moving consumer goods companies have also reported a decrease in volume growth in the first quarter.

Source