New Delhi: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, on Tuesday, said the government is committed to further reforms for making India a more attractive investment destination.

“I only can invite and assure that the Government of India is committed to further reforms in various sectors whether it is banking, mining or insurance and so on,” Sitharaman said, addressing the India-Sweden Business Summit here.

Though the minister did not reveal more, she has indicated that the government is addressing challenges faced by industry, not just Indian-owned but all operational industries present in India.

She invited Swedish firms to invest in infrastructure development projects. “Our step of corporate tax reduction shows how much our government believes in reforms. There are many more steps that we have to take,” she said, adding that the government has formed a task force, which will come out with a list 10 major infrastructure projects by December 15.

The finance ministry, meanwhile, said public sector banks have disbursed a record Rs 4.91 lakh crore of loans during October-November, as part of the government-mandated outreach programme.

Banks disbursed Rs 2.52 lakh crore in October and Rs 2.39 lakh crore in November, taking the total disbursement to Rs 4.91 lakh crore.

To boost consumption and revive the economy, Sitharaman had in September asked banks to reach out to customers and signal their willingness to lend, particularly to MSMEs, shadow banks, corporates, retail and agriculture sector borrowers.

During the two months, banks have given Rs 72,985 crore to the MSME sector while loans to corporates stood at Rs 2.2 lakh crore. For NBFCs, the banks disbursed Rs 45,153 crore.

Published On : 04-12-2019

Source : Deccan Chronicle