Priority Sector Lending (PSL)

The RBI recently revised its priority sector guidelines to encourage banks to provide small loans in economically disadvantaged districts with low average loan sizes.

About Priority Sector Lending (PSL):

1. Lending requirement administered by the RBI: Requires banks to give a minimum proportion of their loans to sectors of development importance or sectors that have difficulty getting loans.

2. Periodic updates: The RBI periodically updates the sectors that are eligible to get priority sector lending and the limits of loans.

3. Identified institutions: The regulations identify institutions that are obliged to provide these loans.

Categories of Priority Sectors:

1. Agriculture
2. Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises
3. Export Credit
4. Education
5. Housing
6. Social Infrastructure
7. Renewable Energy
8. Others

Targets under PSL:

1. Domestic SCBs and foreign banks with 20 branches and above: 40% of Adjusted Net Bank Credit (ANBC) or Credit Equivalent Amount of Off-Balance Sheet Exposure (CEOBE), whichever is higher.

2. Foreign banks with less than 20 branches: 40% of ANBC or CEOBE, whichever is higher; out of which up to 32% can be in the form of lending to exports and not less than 8% can be to any other priority sector.

3. Regional Rural Banks and Small Finance Banks: 75% of ANBC or CEOBE, whichever is higher.

4. Primary (Urban) Co-operative Banks (UCBs): 40% of ANBC or CEOBE, whichever is higher, which shall be increased to 75% of ANBC or CEOBE, whichever is higher, with effect from FY2025-26.

Meeting PSL Obligations:

1. Banks can meet their PSL obligations by extending loans, providing credit facilities, and offering financial products and services to individuals, entities, and enterprises in the priority sectors.
2. They can also fulfill their targets through investments in eligible instruments, such as bonds issued by entities engaged in priority sector activities.

Penalty for Non-Compliance:

1. In case banks fail to meet their PSL targets, they have to deposit the allocated amount to the Rural Infrastructure Development Fund (RIDF) established with NABARD and to other funds with NABARD, SIDBI, Mudra, National Housing Bank, etc., as decided by the RBI from time to time.

Priority Sector Lending Certificates (PSLCs):

1. Definition: Certificates issued against priority sector loans for banks.
2. Purpose: Allow banks to meet their targets and sub-targets when it comes to priority sector lending by buying the instruments.
3. Function: Banks use PSLCs to guard against shortfalls and incentivize, through surplus, to lend more to priority sectors.

Revised RBI Guidelines

1. Discouraging lending in high-loan-size districts: The new norms discourage lending in districts with high average loan sizes.

2. Weightage system: Starting from FY25, more weight (125%) will be given to fresh priority sector loans in districts where the loan availability is low (less than Rs 9,000 per person).

In districts with high loan availability (more than Rs 42,000 per person), the loans will have a weight of 90%.

3. Exceptions: With the exception of outlier districts with low credit availability and those with high loan sizes, all other districts will continue to have the current importance level of 100%.

Rural Infrastructure Development Fund (RIDF)

1. Establishment: Set up by the Government in 1995-96 for financing ongoing rural infrastructure projects.
2. Maintenance: The Fund is maintained by the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD).
3. Contribution: Domestic commercial banks contribute to the Fund to the extent of their shortfall in stipulated priority sector lending to agriculture.
4. Objective: The main objective of the Fund is to provide loans to State Governments and State-owned corporations to enable them to complete ongoing rural infrastructure projects.

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