Govt To Soon Form Banking Committee For Viksit Bharat Roadmap: Sitharaman

New Delhi, Feb 9 (KNN) The government will soon constitute a High-Level Committee on Banking for Viksit Bharat to draw up a roadmap for strengthening the banking sector to meet the financing needs of a developed India, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has said.

The move is part of the Budget proposals aimed at further strengthening India's banking sector which is crucial for achieving higher industrial and overall economic growth. Speaking to PTI, the Finance Minister said the proposed committee will comprehensively review the banking sector and suggest measures to align it with India's next phase of growth.

"We want the committee to tell us what kind of things we need to do so that banking is made available for funding Viksit Bharat," she said.

Focus on Scale, Not Just Mergers

Responding to queries on whether the committee could recommend further mergers of public sector banks, Sitharaman said the issue should not be viewed narrowly.

"It is for India's banking sector to be made big enough, primed to take care of Viksit Bharat funding. You have to reach the Viksit Bharat destination. It needs money, financing, credit and banking facilities to reach the common man," she said.

The proposal to establish the committee was announced in the Union Budget 2026–27, where Sitharaman said it would aim to align the banking sector with India's development trajectory while safeguarding financial stability, inclusion and consumer protection.

Restructuring Public Sector NBFCs

As part of efforts to achieve scale and improve efficiency in public sector financial institutions, the Budget also proposed restructuring the Power Finance Corporation (PFC) and Rural Electrification Corporation (REC).

REC is currently a subsidiary of state-owned lender PFC, and both play a critical role in financing power generation, transmission and distribution projects.

The proposed High-Level Committee is expected to provide strategic direction on how India's banking ecosystem can scale up to support infrastructure expansion, industrial growth and broader economic transformation under the Viksit Bharat vision.

(KNN Bureau)