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Survey of micro-finance bodies planned

Kolkata: The West Bengal Government will soon begin a survey of the 21 micro-finance institutions in the State, so that action could be dovetailed with the Malegam Committee report which is expected to be submitted earlier than the January 31 deadline.

Addressing reporters after a meeting with the chairmen-cum-managing directors and senior officials of the three city-based banks as well as officials of the Reserve Bank of India, Finance Minister Asim Dasgupta said that it had been decided at the meeting that the study would be done by the NABARD and the Bureau of Applied Economics and Research.

“We plan to complete the report by a month. There are 21 micro-finance institutions working in West Bengal for the last three to four years and it will be probed whether they are registered with any body, their geographical area of operation, their interest rates and their recovery methods." The study will be conducted in coordination with the RBI.

To a question, he said the State Government might not need the relaxation that it had sought from the central bank on its borrowings. “Given the accelerating rate of our revenue mobilisation and in case we get our dues from the Centre, we may not need the relaxation,” he said. Dr. Dasgupta has held a meeting with Union Finance Minister on its over Rs 7,000 crore dues.

Dr. Dasgupta said it had also been decided that 200 self-help groups would be created for acting as banking correspondents in order to take banking services to 2,581 un-banked villages in West Bengal by March 2011. Of the 39,000 villages in West Bengal currently over 7,000 do not have a bank branch.

He said that at the meeting it was also decided to expand by a lakh the present 11.46 lakh SHGs operating in the State with increased loan facilities from the banks. The target of loans given to the small and the cottage sector was also to be doubled to Rs 8,000 crores this fiscal. Farm loans would also be increased substantially and a meeting would be held with banks for fixing a district-wise target. He indicated that the roll-out may be done by the Union Finance Minister. The meeting was a follow-up of the one held on Wednesday among the State Finance Minister, the RBI Governor and the Chief Minister.

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