Regulation in India's microfinance sector aims to address feckless borrowing and reckless lending – but will the new restrictions entrench poverty, rather than end it? One of the many crushing burdens for India's poor bear is debt; unable to make ends meet, they turn to traditional moneylenders. They are willing to extend credit, but at unconscionably high rates – sometimes exceeding 80%, and keeping borrowers in lifelong penury. Popular cinema and...
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SKS may shut shop in Andhra Pradesh by Dinesh Unnikrishnan & Aveek Datta
SKS Microfinance Ltd on Thursday said it may downsize operations and even “shut shop” in Andhra Pradesh, which accounts for a quarter of its business, if the southern state retains its recent Act governing microcredit operations. “If the state Act is not repealed, we wouldn’t have a choice but to shut shop in Andhra and leave,” founder and chairman Vikram Akula said. India’s largest and only listed microfinance institution (MFI) would not,...
More »Subbarao deposes before PAC by Neena Vyas
Reserve Bank of India Governor D. Subbarao on Thursday deposed before the public accounts committee (PAC), which is looking into the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) report on the 2G spectrum allocation scandal. PAC chairman Murli Manohar Joshi said the committee had some questions to ask related to Dr. Subbarao's stint as Finance Secretary in 2007-08 just before he became RBI Governor. At a previous meeting of the PAC, another former...
More »Journalists in 2G tapes will face PAC: Joshi
Journalists, whose names have cropped up in the 2G scam tapes, will face the public accounts committee, PAC chairman Murli Manohar Joshi has said. Joshi, in an interview to Aaj Tak, said, "Editors and senior journalists who have incriminated themselves in a way on the 2G scam tapes will be summoned by the PAC", Joshi said. He added that the telecom scam had caused huge losses to the exchequer and that if...
More »Master card: The UID faces opposition by Udit Misra
Why is the opposition to the UID scheme growing? The unique identity (UID) numbers being issued with much fanfare have no legal sanctity. This may surprise many who casually know about the UID scheme and believe it represents a progressive and transparent new India. The problem is, the Bill which proposes setting up an Authority mandated to issue such numbers was introduced in Parliament only in December 2010. This is yet to...
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