FM reviews PSBs’ preparedness to implement stimulus

NEW DELHI: Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday reviewed the readiness of public sector banks (PSBs) to implement the ₹20,97,053 crore economic stimulus package announced between March 26 and May 17, the finance ministry said.

The finance minister chaired the review meeting through video conference with the chief executives of PSBs, the ministry said in a tweet.

Department of financial services (DFS) said the meeting was held to operationalise the announcements made to provide relief to the poor and stimulate the economy. “Everyone aligned on the need for quickly addressing the needs of MSMEs [micro, small and medium enterprises] and other customers,” it said in a tweet. Operational details will be released soon, the DFS added.

The government on March 26 announced a ₹1.70 lakh crore welfare package under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana (PMGKY). It was followed by monetary measures worth ₹8.01 lakh crore taken by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) between March 27 and April 17. Recently, Sitharaman announces an additional ₹11.02 lakh crore stimulus package in five-parts between May 13 and May 17 under an overall umbrella of Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan (Self-reliant India Initiative).

PSBs play key role in effective implementation of most of the announcements the government made since March 26, hence the finance minister will frequently review the progress made by state-run banks in this direction, two finance ministry officials said requesting anonymity.

Most of the schemes are executed through PSBs and banks are directly responsible for welfare schemes that involve direct benefit transfer, one of the officials said. A second official said the government is also monitoring the credit flow, which is a must to boost the economy.