Canara Bank adopts recovery strategies to contain NPAs

 In a bid to contain NPAs (non-performing assets), public sector lender Canara Bank has initiated a host of measures including ‘Mission Samadhan through Canadalats’.

Under the mission, the bank is inviting NPA borrowers to discuss the settlement proposal. The bank is conducting such adalats at every village/taluka/district levels for cluster of branches in the area. The bank could settle more than 35,000 cases amounting to Rs 160 crore approximately in these adalats, a release said.

The bank has so far declared 475 willful defaulters with an exposure of about Rs 3,600 crore as per the RBI guidelines, the statement added.

The bank has also introduced schemes of settlement to address the problems faced by small borrowers for reduction of small NPAs (less than Rs 10 lakh), wherein 1.32 lakh accounts were resolved amounting to Rs 810 crore.

The bank has relaxed the existing settlement schemes for education loan to ease the burden of debt on parents and students. A campaign ‘Operation  Nano’ has been launched to target NPAs less than Rs 50,000, wherein bank could reduce over 52,500 NPA accounts till Jan 2017.

The bank has been actively participating in National Lokadalats organised by the judicial departments of the states in its efforts to help the borrowers get rid of the loan burden on mutually acceptable terms. So far 8,963 cases amounting to Rs 83 crore were discussed in National Lokadalats and 4,885 cases amounting to Rs 43 crore are settled.