``Banks will have to fulfill two criteria for Y2K. The system should behave rationally when given dates after December 31, 1999 in real-time conditions. Secondly the solutions should also be compatible of tackling year 2000 - a leap year,'' he added. On being asked what action the RBI would take against banks who do not stick to the deadline, Subramanyam said one of the possibilities could be penal measures. However, a formal decision in this regard would be taken by the panel headed by the deputy governor S P Talwar, he added.

``The country needs to tackle the Y2K problem more vigorously and there is definitelya cause for alarm, said Lalit Sawhney, chairman, core group on Y2K set up by the Confederation of Indian Industry.

Briefing the press after a meeting of the core group here, he said though the level of computerisation in the country was not sizeable, there was less awareness among the groups concerned and even documentation of the information systems was not adequate. The country was likely to face more problems if they were not addressed immediately, he added.

According to the National Task-force on Information Technology, the amount required for rectifying the Y2K problem was estimated to cost Rs 700 crore and so far, no efforts had been made, to provide budgetary allocations, he added. He further added that the Department of Electronics (DoE) had agreed to create a web page on the Internet on the Y2K solutions developed for various sectors and has also CII to come out with a sector-wise impact report on the Y2K problem as this would enable to replace and reset the systems. The impact assessment isexpected to be complete by June 1999, said Swahney.