Loans from PSU banks: 5,600 cos defaulted

Over 5,600 companies have defaulted to the tune of about Rs 51,000 crore (Rs 510 billion) in loans taken from public sector banks as on September 30, 2010, Parliament was informed on Friday.

According to the Reserve Bank of India data, as on September 30, 2010, there were 1,628 non-suit filed accounts, amounting to Rs 17,363 crore (Rs 173.63 billion), Minister of State for Finance Namo Narain Meena said in a written reply to the Lok Sabha.

He said as per Credit Information Bureau (India) Ltd website, there were 4043 Suit filed accounts amounting to Rs 34,558 crore (Rs 345.58 billion).

The minister said RBI maintains a list of non-suit filed borrowers of banks and financial institutions, while CIBIL had a database on suit-filed accounts of Rs 1 crore (Rs 10 million)

and above.

To improve the health of financial sector, to reduce the non-performing assets, to improve asset quality of banks and to create a good recovery climate, Reserve Bank of India snd the banks have already taken various steps over the years, he said.

This inter-alia, include prescribing prudential norms for provisioning and classification of non-performing assets, Meena said.

He added that guidelines for prevention of slippages, corporate debt restructuring and other restructuring schemes, one-time settlement schemes and enactment of Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Act, 2002, are in place for smooth recovery of such loans.