......Why aren’t the banks lowering their low rates? They cannot do so because their bad assets are growing and they need to set aside more money to take care of that. Besides, they are also setting aside money for the statutory dues of their employees, such as pension and gratuity, which they had not done before. The impact of the combined provision on their balance sheets is quite big. On top of that, if they want to cut their loan rates, their interest income will go down, and that will affect their profitability......
The Reserve Bank of India’s Agartala branch is working in tandem with the Tripura school education department to prepare a syllabus to impart financial education to students. RBI Agartala branch General Manager A.K. Pandey said the syllabus was being prepared for introduction at the school level because financial transactions and issues were changing fast over the past decade, thanks to new technologies. “During the past two decades, banking services as well as financial matters have undergone major changes. That’s why an awareness programme is required to educate people, right from their student days, about these services to ensure a convenient adult life,” Pandey said, adding that the state government was extending full co-operation to RBI in all matters. Pandey and RBI’s Banking Ombudsman in the Northeast, B.B. Sangma, who were at Udaipur, the headquarters of the newly created Gomati district in Tripura, spoke about the activities of the RBI banking ombudsman......
