JOIN US As many as nine state-owned financial institutions have joined hands for consortium lending to infrastructure projects having worth over Rs 1,000 crore each.
These financial institutions are State Bank of India, Punjab National Bank, Bank of India, Bank of Baroda, Canara Bank, Union Bank, IDBI Bank, IIFCL and LIC. The consortium aims to speed up the sanction process, bring uniformity in the approach and terms of lending, thereby facilitate early financial closure of the infrastructure project, it said.
Banks have been cautious to lending to infrastructure projects due to various reasons, including land issues.
The country’s poor infrastructure, which is seen as a major bottleneck for economic growth, requires an estimated investment of a whopping $1 trillion in the 12th Plan (2012-17). Of this, 50 per cent is expected to come from the private sector.