Asim Dasgupta, the former finance minister of West Bengal, wants to separate RRBs from sponsor banks

KOLKATA: Asim Dasgupta, the former finance minister of West Bengal, has revived the proposal to delink regional rural banks from sponsor banks and create a national rural bank to improve rural credit delivery.

He said he was ready to be part of any delegation to take the eight-year old proposal to union finance minister Pranab Mukherjee.

In 2004, Dasgupta had led in passing an all-party resolution in West Bengal assembly to delink RRBs from sponsor banks and took the proposal to the then finance minister P Chidambaram.

""The share of sponsor banks can be transferred to Nabard (National Bank for Agriculture & Rural Development),"" Dasgupta said at a seminar organised by All India Regional Rural Bank Employees Association.

Sponsor banks hold 35% interest in respective RRBs. The central government holds 50% equity with state governments the balance 15%.

""RRBs can be clubbed into a national rural bank with state chapters,"" he said. The employees association has been mobilising support for a similar demand for a long time.

RRBs were created in 1976 with a goal to ensure sufficient flow of institutional credit to agriculture and the rural sector.