Overview
- The Finance Ministry formally set up the High Level Committee on Banking for Viksit Bharat on Oct. 30 to review India’s banking rules and institutions.
- Former Central Vigilance Commissioner Suresh N. Patel will chair the panel and it includes RBI deputy governor Shirish Chandra Murmu, ex‑deputy governor N S Vishwanathan and Padmaja Chunduru; the committee has a six‑month mandate to report by April 2027.
- The committee’s published terms of reference direct it to audit regulatory and legal frameworks for commercial, regional rural and cooperative banks and recommend structural, legislative or prudential changes where needed.
- Key tasks include assessing long‑term capital needs for banks, DFIs and NBFCs, reviewing the Priority Sector Lending framework and Lead Bank Scheme, and drawing a roadmap for AI and digital adoption with cyber safeguards and a talent strategy.
- Industry sources expect the panel may examine long‑standing structural questions such as corporate entry to banking, the 26% voting‑rights cap and FDI approval processes, and its recommendations could affect credit availability, private investment and bank scale.