Union Finance and Corporate Affairs Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has called upon public sector banks (PSBs) to sharpen monitoring of priority sector lending (PSL) targets and sub-targets, while ensuring that credit reaches intended beneficiaries in a productive and timely manner.
Addressing the concluding session of the two-day PSB Confluence 2026, Sitharaman stressed the need for granular monitoring and early identification of emerging gaps in priority sector lending.
She urged PSBs to adopt appropriate business strategies to minimise shortfalls against individual PSL targets and sub-targets, with the focus remaining on genuine credit flow to priority sectors and beneficiaries.
Month-long youth banking campaign
Sitharaman also called upon PSBs to undertake a focused month-long campaign beginning October 2, 2026, targeting young people above the age of 16 years.
The campaign, to be coordinated through the Indian Banks’ Association (IBA), is aimed at strengthening banks’ engagement with young citizens entering the formal financial system.
The initiative seeks to help banks establish sustained relationships with young customers and support their evolving financial needs as they move through education, employment, entrepreneurship, investment and wealth creation.
Focus on agriculture and credit cards
The second day of the Confluence focused on three key areas — Agriculture and Horticulture Value Chain Infrastructure, Priority Sector Lending and Reimagining the Credit Card Business.
Deliberations on agriculture and horticulture examined opportunities to strengthen financing across the value chain, including farmer producer organisations (FPOs), storage, processing, logistics and market linkages.
The discussions on PSL were complemented by practical experiences shared by CA Arvind Agarwal, Director, VNR Group, on agriculture and horticulture value chain infrastructure, and Sanjay Mehndiratta, Director, Toy Zone, on priority sector lending.
The session on reimagining the credit card business explored strategies around digital onboarding, increased cross-selling to existing customers and opportunities emerging from the integration of RuPay and UPI.
From deliberations to implementation
The thematic discussions were followed by debriefing sessions during which groups presented actionable strategies and innovative solutions emerging from deliberations across all seven themes of the Confluence.
Addressing the concluding session, Sitharaman emphasised that the discussions must translate into tangible outcomes. She called upon PSBs and Public Financial Institutions (PFIs) to leverage their institutional strengths, anticipate emerging opportunities and build capabilities aligned with India’s evolving economic requirements.
The Secretary, Department of Financial Services (DFS), said the Confluence had enabled sharper identification of priorities and clearer actionable measures across the seven themes.
PSBs and PFIs will now need to translate these priorities into implementation through clear ownership and realistic timelines, while successful institutional models could be examined for wider adoption.
Supporting Viksit Bharat 2047
The PSB Confluence 2026 brought together the collective experience of PSBs, PFIs, government representatives and domain experts to deliberate on issues shaping the future of India’s banking and financial sector.
The strategies emerging from the Confluence are expected to be taken forward by the concerned institutions through appropriate follow-up and implementation.
As India works towards the Viksit Bharat 2047 vision, PSBs and PFIs are expected to play a key role in deepening financial inclusion, financing emerging opportunities and supporting the next phase of economic growth.