Patna: Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday said Prime Minister Narendra Modi envisions women as key drivers of India’s economic progress. She also highlighted the nation’s journey toward becoming the world’s third-largest economy.
Speaking at a credit outreach programme in Darbhanga, where banks distributed loans amounting to Rs 1,388 crore to 49,137 beneficiaries, Sitharaman said, “Earlier, the PM used to tell me that the Union Budget should be women-centric. But now he says the Budget should be one that visualises women in leadership roles.”
During her two-day visit to Bihar, Sitharaman acknowledged the contributions of women in the Mithila region’s renowned products, particularly ‘makhana’ (foxnut) and Madhubani paintings. She discussed initiatives such as ‘Drone Didi’ and highlighted financial support for women entrepreneurs through self-help groups, along with skill development programmes.
Referring to Mithila as Sita’s birthplace, she said women’s contributions would help India elevate its economy from its current fifth position to third globally within approximately eighteen months.
Earlier in the day, Sitharaman chaired a meeting in Patna to review the performance of eight regional rural banks (RRBs) across Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha and West Bengal. She urged the RRBs to increase their share in agriculture credit disbursement, particularly for allied activities like dairy, animal husbandry and fisheries. Specifically, she directed the Uttar Bihar Gramin Bank to improve credit flow to fisheries and makhana production to unlock their regional potential.
Sitharaman stressed the need for technology upgrades in RRBs to boost efficiency and service delivery, underlining the importance of digital services such as internet banking, mobile banking and UPI. She directed RRBs to onboard these services by the end of December 2024 and promote their usage among customers with the support of sponsor banks.
Highlighting the ‘one district one product’ (ODOP) programme, Sitharaman stressed its potential for self-employment in the region. She urged state govts to collaborate with banks to increase credit flow to women self-help groups (SHGs) and work with NABARD and SIDBI to help these groups evolve into enterprises. Financial institutions were also directed to support training and marketing linkages.
Bihar’s deputy chief minister and finance minister Samrat Choudhary called for an increase in bank branches in rural areas and improvement in the credit-deposit ratio. He also urged banks to support small-scale industries and promote digital transactions in rural areas.
The meeting was attended by M Nagaraju, secretary of the department of financial services, chairpersons of RRBs and sponsor banks as well as representatives from NABARD, SIDBI and participating states.
