KOLKATA: The latest report by a credible bankers' body, on Wednesday, identified the pathetic state of institutional financial inclusion among people residing in rural West Bengal.
The poor show is in terms of both deposits mobilised and loans disbursed by the rural branches operating from the rural belts in the state.
The pathetic picture on this count was revealed in the latest report of the State Level Bankers' Committee (SLBC) in West Bengal having representations from both the different banks operating in the state as well as from the West Bengal government.
As per the report, while the average savings deposit rate per individual per month in rural West Bengal currently stands at just Rs 279, the loan rate per person there is just Rs 19.
Economists say that while the low average savings deposit rate per individual per month indicates the lack of adequate disposable income among the people in rural West Bengal to park in savings, the low rate of loans per person indicates their lack of financial credibility to avail of institutional borrowing.
At the same time, economists say, the two figures also indicate the pathetic credit to deposit (CD) ratio in the state, a factor where West Bengal had been traditionally much behind the national average.
The CD ratio for any state is determined on the basis of the total deposit accumulation figure in the state being divided by the total loans disbursed figure during a particular financial year.