The cabinet on Thursday approved finance ministry?s proposal to allocate R1,000 crore to India?s first all women’s bank taking forward the government’s intent to set up the Bhartiya Mahila bank proposed in the Budget this year.
The fund allocated to the bank will be included in the first supplementary to be approved in the ongoing monsoon session of Parliament. The R 1,000 crore initial capital is to ensure that the bank — which is expected to be operational by this November?does not face any financial difficulties for expansion of normal business.
Earlier, the minister of state for finance Namo Narain Meena had said in a written reply to Rajya Sabha that the idea is to start the Bhartiya Mahila Bank with 6 branches: one each in South, North, East, West, North East and Central region of the country.
The bank is meant to ensure that women, especially those belonging to Self-Help Groups, get easier access to financial services. It also aims at promoting asset ownership, women entrepreneurship and participation of women in the economic activities to provide impetus to the process of inclusive growth and also their empowerment, Meena had said.
In his Budget speech, the finance minister P Chidambaram noted that though women are at the head of many banks today, including two public sector banks, there is no bank that exclusively serves women.
This finding, he said, led to have a bank that lends mostly to women and women-run businesses.