Prime Minister Narendra Modi underlined the importance of public sector entities in the financial sector, while pointing to the need to promote private participation, and promised to push ahead with reforms to strengthen the system to meet the requirements of a growing economy.
“A new public sector policy, including for the financial sector, has been announced. There is still a lot of possibility in banking and insurance and therefore, a number of steps have been taken... We are seeking to encourage the private sector, wherever possible. But at the same time, banking and insurance still require an effective presence of the public sector,” the PM said during a post budget webinar with financial sector representatives.
The government’s decision to privatise a couple of state-run entities has drawn protests from the unions. During the interaction, the PM once again sought to comfort bankers, who have been reluctant to lend, fearing action in case something goes wrong, saying he will back those where the intent is right, and underlined that all business decisions cannot go right all the time.
“Any depositor or investor in the country, should experience trust and transparency. The country’s financial arrangement works only on trust - trust about the safety of your savings, trust about the growth of investment and trust about the country’s development.”
