Several top leaders used the occasion of Saraswat Bank’s Centenary celebrations to urge the RBI not to force-change the character of cooperative banks. If Nitin Gadkari wanted RBI not to merge these banks with private lenders, Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis reminded that co-ops are tools to improve the lot of poor.
“Please do not convert the cooperative banking movement into private banks by merging them. If there are some mistakes, make qualitative changes and make them more powerful,” Gadkari said, quote media reports.
Echoing Gadkari’s view Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said the RBI needs to review its practice of keeping high-cost borrowings as this cost is low in other countries.
“Just lower the borrowing cost by 1 per cent and Maharashtra alone can borrow up to Rs. 1 trillion for infra projects with assured returns on investments,” the chief minister said.
On this occasion Union Minister Gadkari voiced reservations over seeking foreign funds for infrastructure projects and said he would prefer to raise money from the common man, including professionals, and promised them interest on their investment.
He favoured taking deposits from retired personnel, poor people, teachers and police constables to fund these projects and said their money would be returned with a good interest, quotes NDTV.
