Bank privatisation: NITI Aayog junks reports, says 'no such list shared'

NITI Ayog has junked the reports claiming that the government's top think-tank has released a list of public sector banks that will be privatised. NITI Aayog on Friday, January 6, issued a clarification wherein it categorically denied sharing any such list.

It said that "a fictitious message is being circulated in the media regarding the list shared by NITI Aayog on the privatization of public sector banks." "It clarifies that no such list has been shared by NITI Aayog in any form."

With just a few weeks left for the budget, speculations were rife regarding the privatisation of banks. A section of media reported that the government is in the process of making extensive preparations for the eventual privatisation of banking institutions.

These reports also quoted Niti Aayog and stated that the think-tank has released a list stating that which financial institutions would be privatised and which will be left out of the sale.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had in the previous budget talked about the privatisation of banks and selling the government's stake of IDBI Bank. Since then, the privatisation of banks has been one of the most discussed topics among analysts, economists and bankers.

Although, the bank union has always strongly protested against the idea of privatisation of public service banks, many experts have suggested that privatisation may bring some respite to the ongoing challenges of the banking sector.

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