Emphasising the need for a healthy customer relationship, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman directed the banks that there should not be any delay in handing over the documents to the customer.
She also advised the banks to ensure compliance with the Reserve Bank of India’s guidelines on the handover of security documents after closure of the loans.
Last year in September itself, the RBI had released guidelines towards the release of documents to customers 30 days from after full repayment or settlement of the loan account.
Once the borrower has made the full payment towards a loan, lenders shall release all the original movable/immovable property documents and remove charges registered with any registry within a period of 30 days, RBI had said.
RBI had also mentioned that for delays attributable to the REs, beyond 30 days, they will compensate borrowers at a rate of Rs 5,000 per day for each day of delay.
Also Read: Release all original property documents within 30 days of loan repayment: RBI instructs lenders
The minister further asked the banks to expeditiously implement the recent Budget announcements, including, a new credit assessment model for MSMEs based on digital footprints and cash-flows.
Banks were instructed to focus on further increasing credit flow to eligible beneficiaries under various Union Government initiatives like PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana and PM Vishwakarma Yojana.
While acknowledging the efforts made by the banks to improve the asset quality, Sitharaman advised them to optimise the scope of resolution and recovery offered by NCLT and NARCL.
Also Read: Nirmala Sitharaman asks banks to conduct ‘special drives’ to garner deposits
Minister Sitharaman also asked banks to ensure that employees reach out to connect with their customers, especially in Rural and Semi-urban areas.
Further, she urged the PSBs to explore collaboration to leverage the respective strengths by sharing best practices in emerging areas and equip themselves to keep pace with changes in banking sector.
