&w=3840&q=100)
Finance Ministry calls for joint effort to cut backlog at debt tribunals
The Finance Ministry on Saturday urged all stakeholders to collaborate in reducing pendency of cases at debt recovery tribunals (DRTs) by establishing an effective recovery ecosystem.
This would facilitate the redeployment of capital locked in cases pending before DRTs for productive use in the economy, the finance ministry said in a statement.
During a colloquium of Chairpersons of Debt Recovery Appellate Tribunals (DRATs) and Presiding Officers of Debt Recovery Tribunals (DRTs) organised by the Department of Financial Services (DFS), the Ministry of Finance also discussed effective implementation of DRT Regulations, 2024 and prioritisation of high value cases in DRTs for optimal recovery.
Justice S V N Bhatti, Judge of the Supreme Court of India, graced the meeting which was also attended by senior officers of the DFS, representatives of various public and private sector banks and Indian Banks' Association.
DFS Secretary M Nagaraju highlighted various key initiatives taken by the Department such as adoption of revised DRT Regulations, mandatory e-filing, hearing through video-conferencing, hybrid hearings etc. for reducing turnaround time of the matters adjudicated by the tribunals.
During the meeting, introduction of further reforms to reduce turn-around time for various processes in DRT proceedings etc. were also discussed.
Robust monitoring and oversight mechanisms by banks for increasing recovery through DRTs and use of alternate dispute resolution mechanisms including Lok Adalats for expeditious disposal of cases were also discussed.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Hindu
an hour ago
- The Hindu
U.T. government's proposal to avail loan from World Bank, ADB in final stages of getting Finance Ministry's nod, says L-G
The Finance Ministry is in the final stages of giving approval to Puducherry government's proposal for availing loan to the tune of ₹8,000 crore from institutions such as World Bank, Asian Development Bank to implement infrastructure works in the Union Territory, Lieutenant Governor K. Kailashnathan said on Tuesday. Participating in the Southern Regional Council meeting of the Confederation of Indian Industry in Puducherry, he said the government had proposed to avail loan from the financial institutions for carrying out infrastructure works, including drinking water and sewage management programmes with a long-term vision in mind. 'It's in the final stages of approval by the Finance Ministry,' he said. While speaking about the potential of the Union Territory for medical tourism considering the presence of nine medical institutions in a small geographical area as that of Puducherry, he said the government was taking proactive measures, including development of airport to attract patients from foreign countries for undergoing super speciality treatment in Puducherry medical colleges. 'Considerable progress has been made in taking forward the runway expansion project and there will be some concrete announcement by October with regard to the expansion work. I have also requested private medical colleges to come up with specific areas of development to tap medical tourism potential. I think we can make inroads into former French colonies to attract people for treatment,' he said. Recalling the earlier proposal of Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research (Jipmer) to establish a multi-organ transplant centre at Sedarapet, the Lt. Governor said the government had decided to give 50 acres of land to the institute for developing the facility. Later, the consent given for the land transfer was cancelled by the government, he said. 'I have requested the Cabinet to reconsider its decision to cancel the land allotment so that the project for setting up an organ transplant centre could be renewed,' Mr. Kailashnathan said. Laying emphasis on the need for focused attention on the fisheries sector, the Lt. Governor said the Union Territory had a huge potential to develop marine economy considering the region's vast shoreline. 'A few days ago, the Centre has sanctioned a Fish Processing Cluster in Karaikal. The cluster is of importance as the government has started promoting deep sea fishing in the Andaman coast for tuna fish. The Centre has promised to extend all support for promotion of the fisheries sector in the region,' he said. Acknowledging the limitations of Puducherry in industrial sector development due to lack of availability of government land, he said the industries should consider developing private industrial parks by buying land. The government would act as a facilitator in this regard, he said. When a CII member pointed out the difficulties faced by them in getting clearances, Mr. Kailashnathan said he was well aware of the situation. 'I came to know a DTP operator was holding on to his position in a panchayat even after a corruption case was registered against him. Then I had to issue a direction for his immediate suspension. In another case, I had to direct the Power Minister to sanction power connection to an industrialist who had been waiting for almost two years. We need to have changes and initiate policy reforms in a focused manner,' he said. The Lt. Governor added that 24 areas have been identified for ease of doing business. The government would table a bill which would then be sent for Centre's approval. The bill would about changes in the present industrial climate of Puducherry, Mr. Kailashnathan said.
Time of India
7 hours ago
- Time of India
Vijay Mallya claims he repaid money in full. But what's the reality?
Vijay Mallya is the talk of the town, again. After his four-hour long podcast with influencer Raj Shamani, the government and banks have called out the 'declared eonomic fugitive' for his claims that he is being harassed by lenders even after he has repaid the outstanding debts. Meanwhile, the lenders have argued that the bankrupt businessman still owes a large amount of money to creditors. Play Video Pause Skip Backward Skip Forward Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration 0:00 Loaded : 0% 0:00 Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 1x Playback Rate Chapters Chapters Descriptions descriptions off , selected Captions captions settings , opens captions settings dialog captions off , selected Audio Track default , selected Picture-in-Picture Fullscreen This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Opaque Semi-Transparent Text Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Caption Area Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Drop shadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like 2만원 기부반지 받고 어린이 후원하기 굿네이버스 더 알아보기 Undo The former Kingfisher airline owner claimed that he has paid a sum of Rs 14,000 crore to banks against loans of Rs 6,200 crore. However, as per TOI sources, Mallya owes banks them nearly Rs 7,000 crore. The math is simple: When the case reached the Debt Recovery Tribunal (DRT) in June 2013, Kingfisher Airlines ' consolidated non-performing assets (NPAs) stood at Rs 6,848 crore, which included non-cumulative redeemable preference shares. Live Events As per the DRT decree, the total dues to creditors, including interest and charges, climbed to Rs 17,781 crore by April 10. Of this, banks have recovered Rs 10,815 crore, leaving an outstanding amount of Rs 6,997 crore, government sources told TOI. Source: TOI Officials said Mallya's repayment claims ignore the accrual of interest and penal charges, which are applicable until the full settlement of loans. Any loan comes with interest until the amount is fully paid. In case of loan defaulters, such as Mallya, there is also a penal interest. Sources added that Mallya appears to be citing repayment of the principal alone. This isn't the first time he has made such assertions. The liquor baron, who left India in 2016, continues to contest legal efforts to extradite him back to face charges of financial fraud and loan default. Following his exit from the country, banks were allowed by courts under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) to liquidate properties attached by enforcement agencies. Sales included marquee assets like the Kingfisher Villa in Goa. These recoveries were conducted in accordance with board-approved policies of banks. 'Norms are uniform irrespective of who the borrower is or from which part of the country or community he or she comes from. So, any allegation or claim made by Mallya regarding recoveries under any undue influence or under media pressure or due to an inherent bias against him is misconstrued and completely baseless,' TOI quoted a source as saying. Loans extended to Kingfisher Airlines also came under scrutiny, with instances of alleged irregularities. Former IDBI Bank chairman Yogesh Agarwal was among those arrested in connection with the case.
Indian Express
10 hours ago
- Indian Express
In a first, Centre caps MGNREGS spend at 60% for first six months of FY 2025-26
For the first time, the government has capped spending under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) at 60 per cent of its annual allocation for the first half of the financial year 2025–26, The Indian Express has learnt. Until now, the rural jobs guarantee scheme has operated as a demand-driven programme with no such spending limit. It is learnt that the Ministry of Finance has informed the Ministry of Rural Development that c will now be brought under the Monthly/Quarterly Expenditure Plan (MEP/QEP), a spending control mechanism from which it had been exempt so far. The Finance Ministry introduced the MEP/QEP in 2017 to help ministries manage cash flow and avoid unnecessary borrowing. MGNREGS remained outside its scope until now, with the Rural Development Ministry arguing that the scheme's demand-driven nature made fixed spending caps unworkable. But at the start of the 2025–26 financial year, the Finance Ministry is learnt to have directed the MoRD to include MGNREGS under the MEP/QEP framework as well. It is learnt that the Rural Development Ministry (MoRD) had submitted its MEP/QEP for MGNREGS to the Budget Division of the Finance Ministry, proposing a higher spending limit for the first two quarters of 2025–26. However, the Finance Ministry did not agree. After multiple rounds of communication between the two ministries, the Finance Ministry informed MoRD on May 29 that it could spend up to 60 per cent of MGNREGS's annual outlay—Rs 86,000 crore—in the first half of the financial year, 'considering the urgent need of expenditure to be incurred during [the] first half.' This means that only Rs 51,600 crore will be available for the scheme until the end of September. Although a 60 per cent spending cap may not have made a difference in most years—given that first-half spending has typically ranged between 50 and 60 per cent (53.5 per cent in 2024–25, 60.51 per cent in 2023–24, 54.29 per cent in 2022–23, 60.83 per cent in 2021–22, and 53.79 per cent in 2020–21)—officials told The Indian Express that it could impact employment generation under the rural job guarantee scheme this year, due to a significant carryover of pending liabilities worth Rs 21,000 crore from the previous financial year. According to government sources, a significant portion of this year's MGNREGS allocation will go towards clearing pending liabilities from the previous financial year, limiting the scope for generating the targeted number of persondays. The term 'persondays' refers to the total number of days of work performed by individuals under the scheme. For 2025–26, the Rural Development Ministry has approved a labour budget of 198.86 crore persondays. Of this, 67.11 per cent—or 133.45 crore persondays — are projected to be created in the first half of the financial year. As of June 8, 2025, the Centre has released Rs 24,485 crore, which is 28.47 per cent of MGNREGS's total allocation of Rs 86,000 crore for the year. Finance Ministry officials are also learnt to have raised questions about the pending liabilities from the previous year. Citing provisions of the MGNREGA Act, 2005—which mandate that wages must be paid within 15 days—they questioned how dues of over Rs 21,000 crore were still pending for the last fortnight (March 15–31) of the 2024–25 financial year. Launched in 200 of the country's most backward rural districts in 2006–07, MGNREGS was expanded to 130 more districts in 2007–08 and rolled out nationwide in 2008–09. The scheme saw a surge in demand during 2020–21, when a record 7.55 crore rural families accessed work under it amid the Covid-19 outbreak. It became a key safety net for migrant workers returning to their villages during the lockdown. Since then, the number of families employed under the scheme has steadily declined—7.25 crore in 2021–22, 6.18 crore in 2022–23, 5.99 crore in 2023–24, and 5.79 crore in 2024–25. These figures do not include beneficiaries from West Bengal, where the scheme has been suspended since March 2022. Harikishan Sharma, Senior Assistant Editor at The Indian Express' National Bureau, specializes in reporting on governance, policy, and data. He covers the Prime Minister's Office and pivotal central ministries, such as the Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers' Welfare, Ministry of Cooperation, Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, Ministry of Rural Development, and Ministry of Jal Shakti. His work primarily revolves around reporting and policy analysis. In addition to this, he authors a weekly column titled "STATE-ISTICALLY SPEAKING," which is prominently featured on The Indian Express website. In this column, he immerses readers in narratives deeply rooted in socio-economic, political, and electoral data, providing insightful perspectives on these critical aspects of governance and society. ... Read More
