The process of merger of its five associate banks in State Bank of India (SBI) has been better than the central government’s expectations. In such a situation, the government does not intend to stop the merger work in public sector banks for longer days. The top officials of the finance ministry are saying that the merger proposal will come from the banks, but the fact is that the files are moving forward at very fast due to the merger of some banks in the banking department. Under this, the merger of the three major banks led by Punjab National Bank (PNB), Canara Bank and Bank of India (BOI) will go forward.

Official sources say that the government is not increasingly aggressively merging, but it is true that now it is not even thought of hanging for longer days. The misconceptions about the bank merger have ended with meeting colleagues in SBI. Under the leadership of PNB, Canara Bank and BOI, the process can move forward on three separate mergers and acquisition proposals. Whose announcement will be announced first in it, it will be decided after discussions at its level between the banks. But within the next few weeks this important announcement can be made in this context. Yes, it is certain that no weaker bank will be imposed on any strong bank. In a strong bank, if a bank with better prospects of small or middle level is merged, then it can give better results.

In the first phase, the number of 21 existing government banks is going up further with the idea of ​​reducing the number to 12. In the first phase, it will also be seen that the way to merge the banks of the same type of technology (IT infrastructure) will be opened. Banks will not have much difficulty in establishing a synergy with this. This will complete the merger process soon. In the second phase, the number of these banks can be reduced. The Government believes that there is no need for more than 5-6 government banks in the country.

The plans for merger of government banks in the country are being considered for 15 years. On the instructions of Atal Bihari Vajpayee Government, the Indian Banks‘ Association (IBA) had prepared a proposal in the year 2003-04. But given the unions’ heavy opposition, the government could not move forward. After that, former Finance Minister P Chidambaram in the UPA-II had prepared a draft of the merger of all other government banks in six banks by a committee constituted under the chairmanship of then finance secretary Ashok Chawla. For the first time, its two associate banks were merged in SBI. But the matter was again hanging. Now Finance Minister Arun Jaitley himself is taking the mergers in government banks as priority.

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