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Pamulaparti Venkata Narasimha Rao

9th Prime Minister of IndiaIn office

21 June 1991 – 16 May 1996

PresidentRamaswamy VenkataramanShankar Dayal Sharma

Preceded by Chandra ShekharSucceeded by Atal Bihari Vajpayee

Minister of DefenceIn office

6 March 1993 – 16 May 1996Preceded by Sharad PawarSucceeded by Pramod Mahajan

In office31 December 1984 – 25 September 1985

Prime Minister Rajiv GandhiPreceded by Rajiv GandhiSucceeded by Shankarrao Chavan

Minister of External AffairsIn office

31 March 1992 – 18 January 1993Preceded by Madhavsinh SolankiSucceeded by Dinesh Singh

In office

25 June 1988 – 2 December 1989Prime Minister Rajiv GandhiPreceded by Rajiv GandhiSucceeded by Vishwanath Pratap Singh

In office14 January 1980 – 19 July 1984

Prime Minister Indira GandhiPreceded by Shyam Nandan Prasad MishraSucceeded by Indira Gandhi

Minister of Home AffairsIn office

12 March 1986 – 12 May 1986Prime Minister Rajiv GandhiPreceded by Shankarrao ChavanSucceeded by Sardar Buta Singh

In office19 July 1984 – 31 December 1984

Prime MinisterIndira GandhiRajiv Gandhi

Preceded by Prakash Chandra SethiSucceeded by Shankarrao Chavan

Chief Minister of Andhra PradeshIn office

30 September 1971 – 10 January 1973Governor Khandubhai Kasanji Desai

Preceded by Kasu Brahmananda ReddySucceeded by Jalagam Vengala Rao

Personal details

Born28 June 1921Vangara, Erstwhile Nizam kingdom

Died23 December 2004 (aged 83)New Delhi, Delhi, India

Political party Indian National Congress

Alma materOsmania UniversityFergusson College

ProfessionLawyerActivistPoet

Religion Hinduism

Pamulaparti Venkata "Narasimha Rao" (28 June 1921 – 23 December 2004) was an Indian lawyer, politician, and activist who served as the ninth Prime Minister of India (1991–1996).[1] He led an important administration, overseeing a major economic transformation and several

home incidents affecting national security of India.[2] Rao who held the Industries portfolio was personally responsible for the dismantling of the Licence Raj as this came under the purview of the Industries Ministry.[3] He is often referred to as the "Father of Indian Economic Reforms".[4] Rao accelerated the dismantling of the license raj, reversing the socialist policies under the government of Rajiv Gandhi. He is best remembered for employing Dr. Manmohan Singh as his Finance Minister. Dr. Manmohan Singh launched India's globalization angle of the reforms that implemented the IMF policies to rescue the almost bankrupt nation from economic collapse.[3] Rao was also referred to as Chanakya for his ability to steer tough economic and political legislation through the parliament at a time when he headed a minority government.[5][6]

Rao's term as Prime Minister was an eventful one in India's history. Besides marking a paradigm shift from the industrializing, mixed economic model of Jawaharlal Nehru to a market driven one, his years as Prime Minister also saw the emergence of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), a major right-wing party, as an alternative to the Indian National Congress which had been governing India for most of its post-independence history. Rao's term also saw the destruction of the Babri Mosque in Ayodhya which triggered one of the worst Hindu-Muslim riots in the country since its independence.[7] Rao died in 2004 of a heart attack in New Delhi. He was cremated in Hyderabad.[8]

Contents

1 Early life 2 Political career 3 Achievements

o 3.1 Economic reforms o 3.2 National security, foreign policy and crisis management

4 Challenges faced in office o 4.1 Economic crisis and initiation of liberalization o 4.2 Rise in separatist movements o 4.3 Babri Mosque riots o 4.4 Latur earthquake

5 Corruption scandals 6 Later life and financial difficulties 7 Death 8 Rao's legacy and the current Congress leadership 9 References 10 External links

Early life

P.V. Narasimha Rao had "humble social origins".[5] He was born in 28 June 1921 at Laknepally village -Near Narsampet in Warangal District to a Niyogi Telugu Brahmin family. At the age of 3 years he was adopted and brought up to Vangara village in the present-day Karimnagar district

of Andhra Pradesh (then part of Hyderabad state, British India).[5][9] His father P. Ranga Rao and mother Rukminiamma hailed from agrarian families.[5]

Narasimha Rao was popularly known as PV. He studied Bachelor's in the Arts college at the Osmania University and later on went to Fergusson College now under University of Pune where he completed a Master's degree in law[10] His mother tongue was Telugu and had an excellent grasp on Marathi. In addition to eight Indian languages (Telugu, Hindi, Urdu, Oriya, Marathi, Bengali, Gujarati, Tamil), he spoke English, French, Arabic, Spanish, German, Greek, Latin and Persian.[11] Along with his distant cousin Pamulaparthi Sadasiva Rao, Ch. Raja Narendra and Devulapalli Damodar Rao, PV edited a Telugu weekly magazine called Kakatiya Patrika in the 1940s.[12] PV and Sadasiva Rao used to contribute articles under the pen-name Jaya-Vijaya.[12][13]

Narasimha Rao has three sons and five daughters. His eldest son P.V. Rangarao was an education minister in Kotla Vijaya Bhaskar Reddy cabinet and MLA from HanmaKonda Assembly Constituency for two terms. His second son P.V. Rajeshwar Rao was a Member of Parliament of the 11th Lok Sabha (15 May 1996-4 December 1997) from Secunderabad Constituency.[14][15]

Political career

Narasimha Rao was an active freedom fighter during the Indian Independence movement [9] and joined full time politics after independence as a member of the Indian National Congress. Narasimha Rao served brief stints in the Andhra Pradesh cabinet (1962–1971) and as Chief minister of the state of Andhra Pradesh (1971–1973).[16] His tenure as Chief minister of Andhra Pradesh is well remembered even today for his land reforms and strict implementation of land ceiling acts in Telangana region. President rule had to be imposed to counter the 'Jai Andhra' movement during his tenure.

When the Indian National Congress split in 1969 Rao stayed on the side of then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and remained loyal to her during the Emergency period (1975–77).[11] He rose to national prominence in 1972 for handling several diverse portfolios, most significantly Home, Defence and Foreign Affairs (1980–1984), in the cabinets of both Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi.[16] In fact it is speculated that he was in the running for the post of India's President along with Zail Singh in 1982.[17]

Rao very nearly retired from politics in 1991. It was the assassination of the Congress President Rajiv Gandhi that made him make a comeback.[18] As the Congress had won the largest number of seats in the 1991 elections, he got the opportunity to head the minority government as Prime Minister. He was the first person outside the Nehru-Gandhi family to serve as Prime Minister for five continuous years, the first to hail from southern India and also the first from the state of Andhra Pradesh.[2][19] Since Rao had not contested the general elections, he then participated in a by-election in Nandyal to join the parliament. Rao won from Nandyal with a victory margin of a record 5 lakh (500,000) votes and his win was recorded in the Guinness Book Of World Records.[20][21] His cabinet included Sharad Pawar, himself a strong contender for the Prime Minister's post, as defence minister. He also broke convention by appointing a non-political economist and future prime minister, Manmohan Singh as his finance minister.[22][23]

Achievements

Economic reforms

Main article: Economic liberalization in IndiaSee also: Licence Raj

Rao's major achievement is generally considered to be the liberalization of the Indian economy. The reforms were adopted to avert impending international default in 1991.[24] The reforms progressed furthest in the areas of opening up to foreign investment, reforming capital markets, deregulating domestic business, and reforming the trade regime. Rao's government's goals were reducing the fiscal deficit, Privatization of the public sector, and increasing investment in infrastructure. Trade reforms and changes in the regulation of foreign direct investment were introduced to open India to foreign trade while stabilizing external loans. Rao wanted I.G. Patel as his finance minister.[25] Patel was an official who helped prepare 14 budgets, an ex-governor of Reserve Bank of India and had headed The London School of Economics and Political Science.[25] But Patel declined. Rao then chose Manmohan Singh for the job. Manmohan Singh, an acclaimed economist, played a central role in implementing these reforms.

Major reforms in India's capital markets led to an influx of foreign portfolio investment. The major economic policies adopted by Rao include:

Abolishing in 1992 the Controller of Capital Issues which decided the prices and number of shares that firms could issue.[24][26]

Introducing the SEBI Act of 1992 and the Security Laws (Amendment) which gave SEBI the legal authority to register and regulate all security market intermediaries.[24][27]

Opening up in 1992 of India's equity markets to investment by foreign institutional investors and permitting Indian firms to raise capital on international markets by issuing Global Depository Receipts (GDRs).[28]

Starting in 1994 of the National Stock Exchange as a computer-based trading system which served as an instrument to leverage reforms of India's other stock exchanges. The NSE emerged as India's largest exchange by 1996.[29]

Reducing tariffs from an average of 85 percent to 25 percent, and rolling back quantitative controls. (The rupee was made convertible on trade account.)[30]

Encouraging foreign direct investment by increasing the maximum limit on share of foreign capital in joint ventures from 40 to 51 percent with 100 percent foreign equity permitted in priority sectors.[31]

Streamlining procedures for FDI approvals, and in at least 35 industries, automatically approving projects within the limits for foreign participation.[24][32]

The impact of these reforms may be gauged from the fact that total foreign investment (including foreign direct investment, portfolio investment, and investment raised on international capital markets) in India grew from a minuscule US $132 million in 1991-92 to $5.3 billion in 1995-96.[31] Rao began industrial policy reforms with the manufacturing sector. He slashed industrial licensing, leaving only 18 industries subject to licensing. Industrial regulation was rationalized.[24]

National security, foreign policy and crisis management

Rao energized the national nuclear security and ballistic missiles program, which ultimately resulted in the 1998 Pokhran nuclear tests. It is speculated that the tests were actually planned in 1995, during Rao's term in office,[33] and that they were dropped under American pressure when the US intelligence got the whiff of it.[34] Another view was that he purposefully leaked the information to gain time to develop and test thermonuclear device which was not yet ready.[35] He increased military spending, and set the Indian Army on course to fight the emerging threat of terrorism and insurgencies, as well as Pakistan and China's nuclear potentials. It was during his term that terrorism in the Indian state of Punjab was finally defeated.[36] Also scenarios of plane hijackings, which occurred during Rao's time ended without the government conceding the terrorists' demands.[37] He also directed negotiations to secure the release of Doraiswamy, an Indian Oil executive, from Kashmiri terrorists who kidnapped him,[38] and Liviu Radu, a Romanian diplomat posted in New Delhi in October 1991, who was kidnapped by Sikh terrorists.[39] Rao also handled the Indian response to the occupation of the Hazratbal holy shrine in Jammu and Kashmir by terrorists in October 1993.[40] He brought the occupation to an end without damage to the shrine. Similarly, he dealt with the kidnapping of some foreign tourists by a terrorist group called Al Faran in Kashmir in 1995 effectively. Although he could not secure the release of the hostages, his policies ensured that the terrorists demands were not conceded to, and that the action of the terrorists was condemned internationally, including by Pakistan.[41]

Rao also made diplomatic overtures to Western Europe, the United States, and China.[42] He decided in 1992 to bring into the open India's relations with Israel, which had been kept covertly active for a few years during his tenure as a Foreign Minister, and permitted Israel to open an embassy in New Delhi.[43] He ordered the intelligence community in 1992 to start a systematic drive to draw the international community's attention to alleged Pakistan's sponsorship of terrorism against India and not to be discouraged by US efforts to undermine the exercise.[44][45] Rao launched the Look East foreign policy, which brought India closer to ASEAN.[46] He decided to maintain a distance from the Dalai Lama in order to avoid aggravating Beijing's suspicions and concerns, and made successful overtures to Tehran. The 'cultivate Iran' policy was pushed through vigorously by him.[47] These policies paid rich dividends for India in March 1994, when Benazir Bhutto's efforts to have a resolution passed by the UN Human Rights Commission in Geneva on the human rights situation in Jammu and Kashmir failed, with opposition by China and Iran.[48]

Rao's crisis management after the 12 March, 1993 Bombay bombings was highly praised. He personally visited Bombay after the blasts and after seeing evidence of Pakistani involvement in the blasts, ordered the intelligence community to invite the intelligence agencies of the US, UK

and other West European countries to send their counter-terrorism experts to Bombay to examine the facts for themselves.[49]

Challenges faced in office

Economic crisis and initiation of liberalization

Rao decided that India, which in 1991 was on the brink of bankruptcy,[50] would benefit from liberalizing its economy. He appointed an economist, Dr. Manmohan Singh, a former governor of the Reserve Bank of India, as Finance Minister to accomplish his goals.[2] This liberalization was criticized by many socialist nationalists at that time.[51]

Rise in separatist movements

Rao has successfully decimated the Punjab separatist movement and neutralized Kashmir separatist movement. In dealing with Kashmir Rao's government was highly restrained by US government and its president Mr.Clinton. Rao's government introduced the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act (TADA),[52] India's first anti-terrorism legislation, and directed the Indian Army to eliminate the infiltrators.[53] Despite a heavy and largely successful Army campaign, the state descended into a security nightmare. Tourism and commerce were largely disrupted. Special police units were often accused of committing atrocities against the local population, Rape, kidnapping, torture and detention under false accusations.[54]

see also Separatist movements of India

Babri Mosque riots

See also: Ayodhya debate

In the late 1980s, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) brought the temple issue to the centerstage of national politics, and the BJP and VHP began organising larger protests in Ayodhya and around the country

Members of the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) demolished the Babri Mosque (which was constructed by India's first Mughal emperor, Babar) in Ayodhya on 6 December 1992.[55] The site is believed by Hindus to be the birthplace of the Hindu god Rama and is believed by the Hindu Community to be a place of a Hindu temple created in the early 16th century. The destruction of the disputed structure, which was widely reported in the international media, unleashed large scale communal violence, the most extensive since the Partition of India. Hindus and Muslims were indulged in massive rioting across the country, and almost every major city including Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Bhopal struggled to control the Unrest.[citation

needed]

Later Liberhan Commission, after extensive hearing and investigation, exonerated PV Narasimha Rao. It pointed out that Rao was heading a minority government, the Commission accepted the

centre’s submission that central forces could neither be deployed by the Union in the totality of facts and circumstances then prevailing, nor could President’s Rule be imposed "on the basis of rumours or media reports". Taking such a step would have created "bad precedent" damaging the federal structure of and would have "amounted to interference" in the state administration, it said. The state “deliberately and consciously understated" the risk to the disputed structure and general law and order. It also said that the Governor’s assessment of the situation was either badly flawed or overly optimistic and was thus a major impediment for the central government. The Commission further said, "... knowing fully well that its facetious undertakings before the Supreme Court had bought it sufficient breathing space, it (state government) proceeded with the planning for the destruction of the disputed structure. The Supreme Court’s own observer failed to alert it to the sinister undercurrents. The Governor and its intelligence agencies, charged with acting as the eyes and ears of the central government also failed in their task. Without substantive procedural prerequisites, neither the Supreme Court, nor the Union of India was able to take any meaningful steps."[56]

In yet another discussion with journalist Shekhar Gupta, Rao answered several of the questions on the demolition. He said he was wary of the impact of hundreds of deaths on the nation, and it could have been far worse. And also he had to consider the scenario in which some of troops turned around and joined the mobs instead. Regarding dismissal of Kalyan Singh (government), he said, "mere dismissal does not mean you can take control. It takes a day or so appointing advisers, sending them to Lucknow, taking control of the state. Meanwhile, what had to happen would have happened and there would have been no Kalyan Singh to blame either."[57]

Latur earthquake

A strong earthquake in Latur, Maharashtra, also killed 10,000 people and displaced hundreds of thousands in 1993.[58] Rao was applauded by many for using modern technology and resources to organize major relief operations to assuage the stricken people, and for schemes of economic reconstruction.[citation needed]

Corruption scandals

In July 1993, Rao's government was facing a no-confidence motion, because the opposition felt that it did not have sufficient numbers to prove a majority. It was alleged that Rao, through a representative, offered millions of rupees to members of the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM), and possibly a breakaway faction of the Janata Dal, to vote for him during the confidence motion. Shailendra Mahato, one of those members who had accepted the bribe, turned approver. In 1996, after Rao's term in office had expired, investigations began in earnest in the case. In 2000, after years of legal proceedings, a special court convicted Rao and his colleague, Buta Singh (who is alleged to have escorted the MPs to the Prime Minister).[59] Rao appealed to a higher court and remained free on bail. The decision was overturned mainly due to the doubt in credibility of Mahato's statements (which were extremely inconsistent) and both Rao and Buta Singh were cleared of the charges in 2002.[60]

Rao, along with fellow minister K.K. Tewary, Chandraswami and K.N. Aggarwal were accused of forging documents showing that Ajeya Singh had opened a bank account in the First Trust

Corporation Bank in St. Kitts and deposited $21 million in it, making his father V.P. Singh its beneficiary. The alleged intent was to tarnish V.P. Singh's image. This supposedly happened in 1989. However only after Rao's term as PM had expired in 1996, was he formally charged by the Central Bureau of Investigation for the crime. Less than a year later the court acquitted him due to lack of evidence linking him with the case.[61]

Lakhubhai Pathak, an Indian businessman living in England alleged that Chandraswami and K.N. Aggarwal alias Mamaji, along with Mr. Rao, cheated him out of $100,000. The amount was given for an express promise for allowing supplies of paper pulp in India, and Pathak alleged that he spent an additional $30,000 entertaining Chandraswami and his secretary. Rao and Chandraswami were acquitted of the charges in 2003,[62]

Later life and financial difficulties

In the 1996 general elections Rao's Congress Party was badly defeated and he had to step down as Prime Minister. He retained the leadership of the Congress party until late 1996 after which he was replaced by Sitaram Kesri. According to Congress insiders who spoke with the media, Rao had kept an authoritarian stance on both the party and his government, which led to the departure of numerous prominent and ambitious Congress leaders during his reign.[citation needed]

Rao rarely spoke of his personal views and opinions during his 5-year tenure. After his retirement from national politics Rao published a novel called The Insider (ISBN 0-670-87850-2). The book, which follows a man’s rise through the ranks of Indian politics, resembled events from Rao’s own life.

According to a vernacular source, despite holding many lucrative posts he faced many financial troubles. One of his sons was educated with the assistance of his son-in-law. He also faced trouble in paying fees for a daughter of his who was then studying medicine.[63] According to PVRK Prasad, an IAS officer who was Narasimha Rao's media advisor when the latter was Prime Minister, Rao asked his friends to sell away his house at Banajara hills to clear the dues of advocates.[64] Rao was afraid of dying before clearing his dues to the lawyers.

Rao suffered a heart attack on 9 December 2004, and was taken to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences where he died 14 days later at the age of 83.[65]

Death

He was cremated with full state honours in Hyderabad, after the then Chief minister of Andhra Pradesh, Dr. Y.S.Rajashekhar Reddy intervened.[66] His body was kept in state at the Jubilee Hall in Hyderabad. His funeral was attended by the incumbent Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, former Prime Minister H. D. Deve Gowda, the incumbent Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president L.K. Advani, the Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee, the then Finance Minister P. Chidambaram and many other dignitaries.[67]

Surprisingly and curiously, there are speculations that the Indian National Congress President did not want PV to be cremated in New Delhi befitting the national status given to a former prime minister.

Rao's legacy and the current Congress leadership

It has been noted that the current leadership of the Congress party attempts to undermine Rao's legacy by denying him the credit for fostering economic reforms in India. For instance, it is reported that in a speech to mark the 125th anniversary of the Congress, the party president Sonia Gandhi "made it a point to ignore P.V. Narasimha Rao".[68][69] It is also reported that[70]

"Sonia Gandhi praised contributions of all Congress prime ministers except P V Narasimha Rao in her speech......Making no mention of Rao in her 15-minute speech, she said Rajiv Gandhi scripted the course of economic policies that were followed by the government (headed by Rao) for the following five years."

Several commentators argue that while Rao should be rightly blamed for his failure to protect the Babri Masjid, at the same time, he should be given credit for initiating the process of economic reforms in India. In an op-ed article published in Business Standard, A.K. Bhattacharya writes:[71]

"Even today, the Congress leadership shows extreme reluctance to acknowledge the role PV Narasimha Rao played in appointing Manmohan Singh as his finance minister and giving him the freedom to unveil the economic reforms package to bail the Indian economy out of an unprecedented crisis. The Congress leadership was correct in blaming Narasimha Rao for his political misjudgment on the Ayodhya issue. But it is now time the same leadership also acknowledged Narasimha Rao’s role in ushering in economic reforms."

In similar vein, Harsh V. Pant argues:[72] [73]

"Clearly as Prime Minister Rao failed in his duty to protect the disputed structure in Ayodhya......Rao's failure cannot be an excuse to deprive him of all the credit that is his due as the nation's prime minister at one of the most difficult times in India's contemporary history......Manmohan Singh is touted as the father of Indian economic reforms but as Singh has himself acknowledged it was Rao was fathered the process......Rao deftly navigated the political waters......and made economic reforms politically tenable. How ironical then that today the same Congress party functionaries......trying to take credit for India's economic success without acknowledging the role of Rao who envisioned and executed the process?"

Historian Ramachandra Guha asserts that Rao has become "the great unmentionable" in the Congress party. In an op-ed article in The Telegraph (Calcutta), Guha writes:[74]

"Narasimha Rao may be denied the credit by the present Congress leadership for taking the Indian economy well above the ‘Hindu rate of growth’ of two to three per cent per annum. But they do not let the public forget his greatest defeat, which was his failure to stop the demolition of the Babri Masjid in December, 1992......From the point of view of the present Congress leadership, Rao’s problem was not just that he was not a Nehru-Gandhi, it was also that as prime

minister he did not genuflect enough to the Nehru-Gandhis......Now that the Nehru-Gandhis once more control both party and government, P.V. Narasimha Rao has become the great unmentionable within Congress circles. I should modify that statement — Rao can be mentioned only if it is possible to disparage him. Thus his contributions to economic growth and to a more enlightened foreign policy are ignored, while his admittedly pusillanimous attitude towards the kar sevaks in Ayodhya is foregrounded......To forget his achievements, but to remember his mistakes, is a product of cold and deliberate calculation."

Commenting on the report of the Liberhan Commission, which exonerated Rao for his role in the Babri Masjid demolition, Indian Express editor Shekhar Gupta writes:[75]

"He surely failed as prime minister to prevent the tragedy at Ayodhya. But his rivals in the Congress did their own party such disservice by spreading the canard that his (and their) government was responsible for that crime. This, more than anything else, lost them the Muslim vote in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar......any dispassionate reading of recent political history will tell you that this is a self-inflicted injury. The Congress has itself built a mythology whereby the Muslims have come to hold their party as responsible for Babri as the BJP......If you take Justice Liberhan’s indictment of so many in the BJP seriously, you cannot at the same time dismiss his exoneration of Rao, and the government, and the Congress Party under him. You surely cannot put the clock back on so much injustice done to him, like not even allowing his body to be taken inside the AICC building. But the least you can do now is to give him a memorial spot too along the Yamuna as one of our more significant (and secular) prime ministers who led us creditably through five difficult years, crafted our post-Cold War diplomacy, launched economic reform and, most significantly, discovered the political talent and promise of a quiet economist called Manmohan Singh."

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Service. Indian Express, 29 December 2009. Retrieved 31 March 2010.70. ̂ "Sonia ignores PV Narasimha Rao, says Rajiv scripted economic reforms". Press Trust

of India (The Times of India, 28 December 2009). 28 December 2009. Retrieved 30 March 2010.

71. ̂ :"Rao's ghost may still haunt Congress". A.K. Bhattacharya. Business Standard, 16 December 2009. Retrieved 30 March 2010.

72. ̂ :"Give Narasimha Rao his due". Harsh V. Pant. livemint.com, 15 December 2009. Retrieved 30 March 2010.

73. ̂ :"Why the Congress cannot erase Narasimha Rao". Harsh V. Pant. rediff.com, 30 December 2009. Retrieved 30 March 2010.

74. ̂ "The great unmentionable: The Congress wishes to overlook Narasimha Rao's achievements". Ramachandra Guha. The Telegraph (Calcutta), 27 March 2010. Retrieved 29 March 2010.

75. ̂ "Tearing down Narasimha Rao". Shekhar Gupta. Indian Express, 28 November 2009. Retrieved 30 March 2010.

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Liberalization, Privatization and Globalization in IndiaThe economy of India had undergone significant policy shifts in the beginning of the 1990s. This new model of economic reforms is commonly known as the LPG or Liberalization, Privatization and Globalization model. The primary objective of this model was to make the economy of the seventh largest country in the world the fastest developing economy in the globe with capabilities that help it match up with the biggest economies of the world.

The chain of reforms that took place with regards to business, manufacturing, and financial industries targeted at lifting the economy of the country to a more proficient level. These economic reforms had

Last Updated On: May 9, 2012

influenced the overall economic growth of the country in a significant manner.

Liberalization

Liberalization refers to the slackening of government regulations. The economic liberalization in India denotes the continuing financial reforms which began since July 24, 1991.

Privatization and Globalization

Privatization refers to the participation of private entities in businesses and services and transfer of ownership from the public sector (or government) to the private sector as well. Globalization stands for the consolidation of the various economies of the world.

LPG and the Economic Reform Policy of India

Following its freedom on August 15, 1947, the Republic of India stuck to socialistic economic strategies. In the 1980s, Rajiv Gandhi, the then Prime Minister of India, started a number of economic restructuring measures. In 1991, the country experienced a balance of payments dilemma following the Gulf War and the downfall of the erstwhile Soviet Union. The country had to make a deposit of 47 tons of gold to the Bank of England and 20 tons to the Union Bank of Switzerland. This was necessary under a recovery pact with the IMF or International Monetary Fund. Furthermore, the International Monetary Fund necessitated India to assume a sequence of systematic economic reorganizations. Consequently, the then Prime Minister of the country, P. V. Narasimha Rao initiated groundbreaking economic reforms. However, the Committee formed by P.V. Narasimha Rao did not put into operation a number of reforms which the International Monetary Fund looked for.

Dr. Manmohan Singh, the present Prime Minister of India, was then the Finance Minister of the Government of India. He assisted P.V. Narasimha Rao and played a key role in implementing these reform policies.

Narsimha Rao Committee's Recommendations

The recommendations of the Narasimha Rao Committee are as follows:

Bringing into the Security Regulations (Modified) and the SEBI Act of 1992 which rendered the legitimate power to the Securities Exchange Board of India to record and control all the mediators in the capital market.

Doing away with the Controller of Capital matters in 1992 that determined the rates and number of stocks that companies were supposed to issue in the market.

Launching of the National Stock Exchange in 1994 in the form of a computerized share buying and selling system which acted as a tool to influence the restructuring of the other stock exchanges in the country. By the year 1996, the National Stock Exchange surfaced as the biggest stock exchange in India.

In 1992, the equity markets of the country were made available for investment through overseas corporate investors. Allowing the companies of the country in fund raising on overseas markets through issuance of GDRs or Global Depository Receipts.

Promoting FDI (Foreign Direct Investment) by means of raising the highest cap on the contribution of international capital in business ventures or partnerships to 51% from 40%. In high priority industries, 100% international equity was allowed.

Cutting down duties from a mean level of 85% to 25%, and withdrawing quantitative regulations. The rupee or the official Indian currency was turned into an exchangeable currency on trading account.

Reorganization of the methods for sanction of Foreign Direct Investment. In 35 sectors as a minimum, routinely sanctioning plans within the boundaries for international investment and involvement.

The outcome of these reorganizations might be estimated by the statistic that the overall amount of overseas investment (comprising portfolio investment, FDI, and investment collected from overseas equity capital markets) in the country) rose to $5.3 billion in 1995-1996 from a microscopic US $132 million in 1991-1992. P.V. Narasimha Rao started industrial guideline changes with the production zones. He did away with License Raj, leaving just 18 sectors which required licensing. Control on industries was moderated.

Highlights of the LPG Policy

Given below are the salient highlights of the Liberalization, Privatization and Globalization Policy in India:

Foreign Technology Agreements Foreign Investment MRTP Act, 1969 (Amended) Industrial Licensing Deregulation Beginning of privatization Opportunities for overseas trade Steps to regulate inflation Tax reforms Abolition of License Raj or Permit Raj

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Narasimham Committee Report 1991 1998 - RecommendationsPost : Gaurav Akrani Date : 9/16/2010 10:12:00 PM ISTNo Comments   Labels : Banking

Problems Identified By The Narasimham Committee

1. Directed Investment Programme : The committee objected to the system of maintaining high liquid

assets by commercial banks in the form of cash, gold and unencumbered government securities. It is

also known as the statutory liquidity Ratio (SLR). In those days, in India, the SLR was as high as 38.5

percent. According to the M. Narasimham's Committee it was one of the reasons for the poor

profitability of banks. Similarly, the Cash Reserve Ratio- (CRR) was as high as 15 percent. Taken

together, banks needed to maintain 53.5 percent of their resources idle with the RBI.

2. Directed Credit Programme : Since nationalization the government has encouraged the lending to

agriculture and small-scale industries at a confessional rate of interest. It is known as the directed

credit programme. The committee opined that these sectors have matured and thus do not need such

financial support. This directed credit programme was successful from the government's point of view

but it affected commercial banks in a bad manner. Basically it deteriorated the quality of loan, resulted

in a shift from the security oriented loan to purpose oriented. Banks were given a huge target of priority

sector lending, etc. ultimately leading to profit erosion of banks.

3. Interest Rate Structure : The committee found that the interest rate structure and rate of interest in

India are highly regulated and controlled by the government. They also found that government used

bank funds at a cheap rate under the SLR. At the same time the government advocated the philosophy

of subsidized lending to certain sectors. The committee felt that there was no need for interest subsidy.

It made banks handicapped in terms of building main strength and expanding credit supply.

4. Additional Suggestions : Committee also suggested that the determination of interest rate should be

on grounds of market forces. It further suggested minimizing the slabs of interest.

Along with these major problem areas M. Narasimham's Committee also found various inconsistencies

regarding the banking system in India. In order to remove them and make it more vibrant and efficient, it

has given the following recommendations.

Narasimham Committee Report I - 1991

The Narsimham Committee was set up in order to study the problems of the Indian financial system and

to suggest some recommendations for improvement in the efficiency and productivity of the financial

institution.

The committee has given the following major recommendations:-

1. Reduction in the SLR and CRR : The committee recommended the reduction of the higher proportion

of the Statutory Liquidity Ratio 'SLR' and the Cash Reserve Ratio 'CRR'. Both of these ratios were very

high at that time. The SLR then was 38.5% and CRR was 15%. This high amount of SLR and CRR

meant locking the bank resources for government uses. It was hindrance in the productivity of the bank

thus the committee recommended their gradual reduction. SLR was recommended to reduce from

38.5% to 25% and CRR from 15% to 3 to 5%.

2. Phasing out Directed Credit Programme : In India, since nationalization, directed credit programmes

were adopted by the government. The committee recommended phasing out of this programme. This

programme compelled banks to earmark then financial resources for the needy and poor sectors at

confessional rates of interest. It was reducing the profitability of banks and thus the committee

recommended the stopping of this programme.

3. Interest Rate Determination : The committee felt that the interest rates in India are regulated and

controlled by the authorities. The determination of the interest rate should be on the grounds of market

forces such as the demand for and the supply of fund. Hence the committee recommended eliminating

government controls on interest rate and phasing out the concessional interest rates for the priority

sector.

4. Structural Reorganizations of the Banking sector : The committee recommended that the actual

numbers of public sector banks need to be reduced. Three to four big banks including SBI should be

developed as international banks. Eight to Ten Banks having nationwide presence should concentrate

on the national and universal banking services. Local banks should concentrate on region specific

banking. Regarding the RRBs (Regional Rural Banks), it recommended that they should focus on

agriculture and rural financing. They recommended that the government should assure that henceforth

there won't be any nationalization and private and foreign banks should be allowed liberal entry in

India.

5. Establishment of the ARF Tribunal : The proportion of bad debts and Non-performing asset (NPA) of

the public sector Banks and Development Financial Institute was very alarming in those days. The

committee recommended the establishment of an Asset Reconstruction Fund (ARF). This fund will

take over the proportion of the bad and doubtful debts from the banks and financial institutes. It would

help banks to get rid of bad debts.

6. Removal of Dual control : Those days banks were under the dual control of the Reserve Bank of

India (RBI) and the Banking Division of the Ministry of Finance (Government of India). The committee

recommended the stepping of this system. It considered and recommended that the RBI should be the

only main agency to regulate banking in India.

7. Banking Autonomy : The committee recommended that the public sector banks should be free and

autonomous. In order to pursue competitiveness and efficiency, banks must enjoy autonomy so that

they can reform the work culture and banking technology upgradation will thus be easy.Some of these recommendations were later accepted by the Government of India and became banking reforms.

Narasimham Committee Report II - 1998

In 1998 the government appointed yet another committee under the chairmanship of Mr. Narsimham. It is

better known as the Banking Sector Committee. It was told to review the banking reform progress and

design a programme for further strengthening the financial system of India. The committee focused on

various areas such as capital adequacy, bank mergers, bank legislation, etc.

It submitted its report to the Government in April 1998 with the following recommendations.

1. Strengthening Banks in India : The committee considered the stronger banking system in the context

of the Current Account Convertibility 'CAC'. It thought that Indian banks must be capable of handling

problems regarding domestic liquidity and exchange rate management in the light of CAC. Thus, it

recommended the merger of strong banks which will have 'multiplier effect' on the industry.

2. Narrow Banking : Those days many public sector banks were facing a problem of the Non-performing

assets (NPAs). Some of them had NPAs were as high as 20 percent of their assets. Thus for

successful rehabilitation of these banks it recommended 'Narrow Banking Concept' where weak banks

will be allowed to place their funds only in short term and risk free assets.

3. Capital Adequacy Ratio : In order to improve the inherent strength of the Indian banking system the

committee recommended that the Government should raise the prescribed capital adequacy norms.

This will further improve their absorption capacity also. Currently the capital adequacy ration for Indian

banks is at 9 percent.

4. Bank ownership : As it had earlier mentioned the freedom for banks in its working and bank

autonomy, it felt that the government control over the banks in the form of management and ownership

and bank autonomy does not go hand in hand and thus it recommended a review of functions of

boards and enabled them to adopt professional corporate strategy.

5. Review of banking laws : The committee considered that there was an urgent need for reviewing and

amending main laws governing Indian Banking Industry like RBI Act, Banking Regulation Act, State

Bank of India Act, Bank Nationalisation Act, etc. This upgradation will bring them in line with the

present needs of the banking sector in India.

Apart from these major recommendations, the committee has also recommended faster computerization,

technology upgradation, training of staff, depoliticizing of banks, professionalism in banking, reviewing

bank recruitment, etc.

Evaluation of Narsimham Committee Reports

The Committee was first set up in 1991 under the chairmanship of Mr. M. Narasimham who was 13th

governor of RBI. Only a few of its recommendations became banking reforms of India and others were

not at all considered. Because of this a second committee was again set up in 1998.

As far as recommendations regarding bank restructuring, management freedom, strengthening the

regulation are concerned, the RBI has to play a major role. If the major recommendations of this

committee are accepted, it will prove to be fruitful in making Indian banks more profitable and efficient.

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Narasimham Committee on Banking Sector Reforms (1998)From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This article's references may not meet Wikipedia's guidelines for reliable sources. Please help by checking whether the references meet the criteria for reliable sources. (November 2011)

From the 1991 India economic crisis to its status of third largest economy in the world by 2011,

India has grown significantly in terms of economic development. So has its banking sector.

During this period, recognizing the evolving needs of the sector, the Finance Ministry

of Government of India (GOI) set up various committees with the task of analyzing India's

banking sector and recommending legislation and regulations to make it more effective,

competitive and efficient.[1] Two such expert Committees were set up under the chairmanship

of M. Narasimham. They submitted their recommendations in the 1990s in reports widely known

as the Narasimham Committee-I (1991) report and the Narasimham Committee-II

(1998) Report. These recommendations not only helped unleash the potential of banking in

India, they are also recognized as a factor towards minimizing the impact of global financial

crisis starting in 2007. Unlike the socialist-democratic era of the 1960s to 1980s, India is no

longer insulated from the global economy and yet its banks survived the 2008 financial

crisis relatively unscathed, a feat due in part to these Narasimham Committees.[2]

Contents

[hide]

1 Background

2 Recommendations of the Committee

o 2.1 Autonomy in Banking

o 2.2 Reform in the role of RBI

o 2.3 Stronger banking system

o 2.4 Non-performing assets

o 2.5 Capital adequacy and tightening of provisioning norms

o 2.6 Entry of Foreign Banks

3 Implementation of recommendations

4 Criticism

5 Reception

6 References

[edit]Background

During the decades of the 60s and the 70s, India nationalised most of its banks. This culminated

with the balance of payments crisis of the Indian economy where India had to airlift gold

to International Monetary Fund (IMF) to loan money to meet its financial obligations. This event

called into question the previous banking policies of India and triggered the era of economic

liberalisation in India in 1991. Given that rigidities and weaknesses had made serious inroads

into the Indian banking system by the late 1980s, the Government of India(GOI), post-crisis,

took several steps to remodel the country's financial system. (Some claim that these reforms

were influenced by the IMF and the World Bank as part of their loan conditionality to India in

1991).[3] The banking sector, handling 80% of the flow of money in the economy, needed

serious reforms to make it internationally reputable, accelerate the pace of reforms and develop

it into a constructive usher of an efficient, vibrant and competitive economy by adequately

supporting the country's financial needs.[4] In the light of these requirements, two expert

Committees were set up in 1990s under the chairmanship of M. Narasimham (an ex-RBI

(Reserve Bank of India) governor) which are widely credited for spearheading the financial

sector reform in India.[3] The first Narasimhan Committee (Committee on the Financial System -

CFS) was appointed by Manmohan Singh as India'sFinance Minister on 14 August 1991,[1][5] and

the second one (Committee on Banking Sector Reforms)[6] was appointed

by P.Chidambaram [7]  as Finance Minister in December 1997.[8] Subsequently, the first one

widely came to be known as the Narasimham Committee-I (1991) and the second one

as Narasimham-II Committee(1998).[9][10] This article is about the recommendations of the

Second Narasimham Committee, the Committee on Banking Sector Reforms.

The purpose of the Narasimham-I Committee was to study all aspects relating to the structure,

organization, functions and procedures of the financial systems and to recommend

improvements in their efficiency and productivity. The Committee submitted its report to the

Finance Minister in November 1991 which was tabled in Parliament on 17 December 1991.[6]

The Narasimham-II Committee was tasked with the progress review of the implementation of

the banking reforms since 1992 with the aim of further strengthening the financial institutions of

India.[4] It focussed on issues like size of banks and capital adequacy ratio among other things.[9] M. Narasimham, Chairman, submitted the report of the Committee on Banking Sector

Reforms (Committee-II) to the Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha in April 1998.[4][9]

[edit]Recommendations of the Committee

The 1998 report of the Committee to the GOI made the following major recommendations:

[edit]Autonomy in Banking

Greater autonomy was proposed for the public sector banks in order for them to function with

equivalent professionalism as their international counterparts.[11] For this the panel

recommended that recruitment procedures, training and remuneration policies of public sector

banks be brought in line with the best-market-practices of professional bank management.[4]

[6] Secondly, the committee recommended GOI equity in nationalized banks be reduced to 33%

for increased autonomy.[4][12][13] It also recommended the RBI relinquish its seats on the board of

directors of these banks. The committee further added that given that the government nominees

to the board of banks are often members of parliament, politicians, bureaucrats, etc., they often

interfere in the day-to-day operations of the bank in the form of the behest-lending.[4] As such

the committee recommended a review of functions of banks boards with a view to make them

responsible for enhancing shareholder value through formulation of corporate strategy and

reduction of government equity.[11]

To implement this, criteria for autonomous status was identified by March 1999 (among other

implementation measures) and 17 banks were considered eligible for autonomy.[14]But some

recommendations like reduction in Government's equity to 33%,[13][15] the issue of greater

professionalism and independence of the board of directors of public sector banks is still

awaiting Government follow-through and implementation.[16]

[edit]Reform in the role of RBI

First, the committee recommended that the RBI withdraw from the 91-day treasury bills market

and that interbank call money and term money markets be restricted to banks and primary

dealers.[6][14] Second, the Committee proposed a segregation of the roles of RBI as a regulator of

banks and owner of bank.[17] It observed that "The Reserve Bank as a regulator of the monetary

system should not be the owner of a bank in view of a possible conflict of interest". As such, it

highlighted that RBI's role of effective supervision was not adequate and wanted it to divest its

holdings in banks and financial institutions.

Pursuant to the recommendations, the RBI introduced a Liquidity Adjustment Facility (LAF)

operated through repo and reverse repos in order to set a corridor for money market interest

rates. To begin with, in April 1999, an Interim Liquidity Adjustment Facility (ILAF) was introduced

pending further upgradation in technology and legal/procedural changes to facilitate electronic

transfer.[18] As for the second recommendation, the RBI decided to transfer its respective

shareholdings of public banks like State Bank of India (SBI), National Housing Bank (NHB)

and National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) to GOI. Subsequently, in

2007-08, GOI decided to acquire entire stake of RBI in SBI, NHB and NABARD. Of these, the

terms of sale for SBI were finalised in 2007-08 itself.[19]

[edit]Stronger banking system

The Committee recommended for merger of large Indian banks to make them strong enough for

supporting international trade.[11] It recommended a three tier banking structure in India through

establishment of three large banks with international presence, eight to ten national banks and

a large number of regional and local banks.[4][9][11] This proposal had been severely criticized by

the RBI employees union.[20] The Committee recommended the use of mergers to build the size

and strength of operations for each bank.[12] However, it cautioned that large banks should

merge only with banks of equivalent size and not with weaker banks, which should be closed

down if unable to revitalize themselves.[6] Given the large percentage of non-performing

assets for weaker banks, some as high as 20% of their total assets, the concept of "narrow

banking" was proposed to assist in their rehabilitation.[11]

There were a string of mergers in banks of India during the late 90s and early 2000s,

encouraged strongly by the Government of India|GOI in line with the Committee's

recommendations.[21] However, the recommended degree of consolidation is still awaiting

sufficient government impetus.[16]

[edit]Non-performing assets

Non-performing assets had been the single largest cause of irritation of the banking sector of

India.[4] Earlier the Narasimham Committee-I had broadly concluded that the main reason for the

reduced profitability of the commercial banks in India was the priority sector lending. The

committee had highlighted that 'priority sector lending' was leading to the build up of non-

performing assets of the banks and thus it recommended it to be phased out.[10] Subsequently,

the Narasimham Committee-II also highlighted the need for 'zero' non-performing assets for all

Indian banks with International presence.[10] The 1998 report further blamed poor credit

decisions, behest-lending and cyclical economic factors among other reasons for the build up of

the non-performing assets of these banks to uncomfortably high levels. The Committee

recommended creation of Asset Reconstruction Funds or Asset Reconstruction Companies to

take over the bad debts of banks, allowing them to start on a clean-slate.[4][22][23] The option of

recapitalization through budgetary provisions was ruled out. Overall the committee wanted a

proper system to identify and classify NPAs,[6] NPAs to be brought down to 3% by 2002[4] and for

an independent loan review meachnism for improved management of loan portfolios.[6] The

committee's recommendations let to introduction of a new legislation which was subsequently

implemented as theSecuritisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of

Security Interest Act, 2002 and came into force with effect from 21 June 2002.[24][25][26]

[edit]Capital adequacy and tightening of provisioning norms

In order to improve the inherent strength of the Indian banking system the committee

recommended that the Government should raise the prescribed capital adequacy norms.[9] This

would also improve their risk taking ability.[11] The committee targeted raising the capital

adequacy ratio to 9% by 2000 and 10% by 2002 and have penal provisions for banks that fail to

meet these requirements.[4][6] For asset classification, the Committee recommended a

mandatory 1% in case of standard assets and for the accrual of interest income to be done

every 90 days instead of 180 days.[14]

To implement these recommendations, the RBI in Oct 1998, initiated the second phase of

financial sector reforms by raising the banks' capital adequacy ratio by 1% and tightening the

prudential norms for provisioning and asset classification in a phased manner on the lines of the

Narasimham Committee-II report.[27] The RBI targeted to bring the capital adequacy ratio to 9%

by March 2001.[28] The mid-term Review of the Monetary and Credit Policy of RBI announced

another series of reforms, in line with the recommendations with the Committee, in October

1999.[14]

[edit]Entry of Foreign Banks

The committee suggested that the foreign banks seeking to set up business in India should

have a minimum start-up capital of $25 million as against the existing requirement of $10

million. It said that foreign banks can be allowed to set up subsidiaries and joint ventures that

should be treated on a par with private banks.[4]

[edit]Implementation of recommendations

In 1998, RBI Governor Bimal Jalan informed the banks that the RBI had a three to four year

perspective on the implementation of the Committee's recommendations.[27] Based on the other

recommendations of the committee, the concept of a universal bank was discussed by the RBI

and finally ICICI bank became the first universal bank of India.[18][29][30] The RBI published an

"Actions Taken on the Recommendations" report on 31 October 2001 on its own website. Most

of the recommendations of the Committee have been acted upon (as discussed above)

although some major recommendations are still awaiting action from the Government of India.[31]

[edit]Criticism

There were protests by employee unions of banks in India against the report. The Union of RBI

employees made a strong protest against the Narasimham II Report.[20] There were other plans

by the United Forum of Bank Unions (UFBU), representing about 1.3 million bank employees in

India, to meet in Delhi and to work out a plan of action in the wake of the Narasimham

Committee report on banking reforms. The committee was also criticized in some quarters as

"anti-poor". According to some, the committees failed to recommend measures for faster

alleviation of poverty in India by generating new employment.[3] This caused some suffering to

small borrowers (both individuals and businesses in tiny, micro and small sectors).

[edit]Reception

Initially, the recommendations were well received in all quarters, including the Planning

Commission of India leading to successful implementation of most of its recommendations.[32] Then it turned out that during the 2008 economic crisis of major economies worldwide,

performance of Indian banking sector was far better than their international counterparts. This

was also credited to the successful implementation of the recommendations of the Narasimham

Committee-II with particular reference to the capital adequacy norms and the recapitalization of

the public sector banks.[2] The impact of the two committees has been so significant that elite

politicians and financial sectors professionals have been discussing these reports for more than

a decade since their first submission applauding their positive contribution

[edit]References

1. ^ a b "Prime Minister’s address at RBI Platinum Jubilee Celebrations". Press Information Bureau,

Government of India. April 01,2010. Retrieved 22 February 2011.

2. ^ a b "Kudos in order, as also more work", Oct13,2008". Thehindubusinessline.in. 2008-10-13.

Retrieved 2011-02-19.

3. ^ a b c "Financial reforms and development". S.D.Naik, Business Line, the Hindu. 26 April 2002.

Retrieved 22 February 2011.

4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l "BANKING REFORMS,

Radical prescriptions". SUDHA MAHALINGAM, Frontline Vol. 15 :: No. 10. 09-22 May 1998.

Retrieved 21 February 2011.

5. ̂  India. Committee on the Financial System; M. Narasimham (1992). Narasimham Committee

report on the financial system, 1991. Standard Book Co.. Retrieved 23 February 2011.

6. ^ a b c d e f g h TR Jain; OP Khanna. Macroeconomics. FK Publications. pp. 345–.ISBN 978-81-

87140-65-8. Retrieved 23 February 2011.

7. ̂  "Financial sector reforms - an assessment". Sudha Sharma, Expressindia.com. 30 December

1997. Retrieved 23 February 2011.

8. ̂  "Make the Buck Stop". India Today, on the net. 11 December 2000. Retrieved 21 February

2011.

9. ^ a b c d e "Narasimham Committee Report 1991 1998 - Recommendations". Gaurav Akrani. 16

September 2010. Retrieved 2011-02-19.

10. ^ a b c "Vidyanidhi Document" (PDF). Retrieved 2011-02-19.

11. ^ a b c d e f "Narasimham Committee on Banking Sector Reforms (1998)". Mbaknol.com. Retrieved

2011-02-19.

12. ^ a b "Going ahead with bank mergers". Thehindubusinessline.in. 2010-01-29. Retrieved 2011-02-

19.

13. ^ a b "Now Govt has to top up funds banks need to grow". Thehindubusinessline.in. 2004-05-21.

Retrieved 2011-02-19.

14. ^ a b c d anurag. "Banking Sector Reforms 1999-2000". Banknetindia.com. Retrieved 2011-02-19.

15. ̂  "Business houses can set up banks". The Economic Times. 2006-09-02. Retrieved 21

February 2011.

16. ^ a b "Budget and banking reforms". K. KANAGASABAPATHY, BusinessLine, Business Daily

from THE HINDU group of publications. 05 Mar 2010. Retrieved 23 February 2011.

17. ̂  "Nip state-run banks stake below 51%, Centre told". Expressindia.com. 1998-08-18. Retrieved

2011-02-19.

18. ^ a b "Text of the monetary and credit policy 2000-01". Expressindia.com. Retrieved 2011-02-19.

19. ̂  "Government acquires entire RBI shareholding in SBI". Press Information Bureau, Government

of India. June 29, 2007. Retrieved 23 February 2011.

20. ^ a b "RBI Union's protest article". Indianexpress.com. 1998-04-25. Retrieved 2011-02-19.

21. ̂  "Govt favors consolidation in banks". Thehindubusinessline.in. 2004-08-29. Retrieved 2011-02-

19.

22. ̂  "Asset reconstruction firm mooted to issue swap bonds for bad loans". Banking

Bureau,Expressindia.com. 6 May 1998. Retrieved 23 February 2011.

23. ̂  "Panel moots ARC to tackle mounting NPA". ENS ECONOMIC BUREAU, Expressindia.com. 6

May 1998. Retrieved 23 February 2011.

24. ̂  "NEW LEGISLATION FOR RECOVERY OF DEBTS". Press Information Bureau, Government

of India. 20 May 2002. Retrieved 23 February 2011.

25. ̂  "Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest

Act, 2002." (PDF). Retrieved 2011-Feb-22.

26. ̂  "Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest

Act, 2002" (PDF). Retrieved 2011-02-22.

27. ^ a b "RBI policy sets deadline for banking reforms". Indian Express Article. Retrieved 2011-02-

19.

28. ̂  "Reforms have been taken up in right earnest: Narasimhan". Expressindia.com. 1998-10-31.

Retrieved 2011-02-19.

29. ̂  ICICI Bank. "History of ICICI Bank". Icicibank.com. Retrieved 2011-02-19.

30. ̂  "First Indian Universal Bank". the banknetindia team. Retrieved 21 February 2011.

31. ̂  "RBI Action Taken Report". Rbi.org.in. Retrieved 2011-02-19.

32. ̂  "INDIA’S ECONOMIC REFORMS: AN APPRAISAL". Montek Singh Ahluwalia. 26 August

1999. Retrieved 23 February 2011.

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