Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee Tuesday asked banks and financial institutions to increase credit flow to various productive sections of the society including small farmers, students and micro entrepreneurs and the micro & small & medium enterprises (MSEs).

"As you are aware, I am holding such meetings with chief ministers across the country on matters that relate to the efficiency with which our banking system interfaces with the common man, the small farmers, students and the micro entrepreneurs so as to ensure timely credit to the poor and the marginalized," he said.

This was the third such meeting in recent weeks. He had addressed similar meets earlier in Patna and Mumbai for chief ministers of eastern and western regions.
 
Addressing a conference of the chief ministers of northern states and union territories and chiefs of various public sector banks and financial institutions in Chandigarh, Mukherjee also outline some of the broad features of credit flow in the Northern Zone. 

"In the area of Micro and Small Enterprises’ credit, the total credit in the North Zone States has grown by 23% during the year 2009-10 over the previous year.  The State of Haryana, Jammu & Kashmir, Uttrakhand and Punjab have shown a growth of credit of more than 20% during the year 2009- over the previous year in credit to MSE sector," he pointed out.

The growth in the remaining States and Chandigarh has been lower, the Finance Minister pointed out.

He said that India's financial sector, which is growing today at a fast pace, provides growth opportunities unparalleled and unmatched by the mature financial markets around the world. "I take this opportunity to advise the banks to transform savings from semi-urban and rural markets into financial assets through effective financial inclusion," he said.

"As of today only 37.2 percent of bank branches are in rural areas and only 40 percents of the country’s population has bank accounts," he said, adding: "The financial inclusion is a priority, as it provides avenues to the poor to bring their savings in the common financial system."