Tripura Gramin Bank posts profit for second successive year

Agartala, July 1 (IANS) The Tripura Gramin Bank (TGB) has posted a net profit of Rs.82.69 crore, the highest among the regional rural banks (RRBs) in eastern and northeastern India, during the last fiscal, the bank's chairman said Tuesday.

TGB, one of India's 82 RRBs, has declared profit for the second consecutive years.

"The TGB has recorded a net profit of Rs.82.69 crore in 2013-14 fiscal against the net profit of Rs.68.77 crore in 2012-13 financial year," TGB chairman Upendra Sabar told reporters.

He said: "The bank (TGB), with 138 branches across Tripura, has targeted a net profit of Rs.95 crore in the current fiscal (2014-15)."

The bank, which has 70 percent branches in the rural areas, also has five ultra-small branches to provide basic bank services to the people residing in unbanked areas.

TGB, along with three other RRBs -- Assam Gramin Bank, Manipur Gramin Bank and Bangiya Gramin Bank in West Bengal, is sponsored by Kolkata-based United Bank of India (UBI).

The bank has also registered a record in per branch business among India's 82 RRBs and per staff business with Rs.37.24 crore and Rs.6.50 crore, respectively, in the last financial year (2013-14).

Sabar said TGB is the first RRB in India to have been accorded permission from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to start treasury function of the Tripura government and open currency chest.

"All the 138 branches of the TGB have came under the core banking services (CBS) and 15 more new branches would be opened in rural and remote areas within a year.

"With the gradual opening of bank branches and new services, the TGB is expected to increase its business exceeding the total business of all other nationalised banks, operating in Tripura," the bank chief said.

According to the bank chairman, the credit-deposit ratio of TGB was 41 percent till last financial year while that of the other commercial banks in Tripura has remained at a level of around 35 to 38 percent over the past many years.

"In keeping with the directives of the RBI, the TGB has engaged several farmers' clubs, retired banks officials and societies as business facilitators (BF) and business correspondents (BC) to extend the banking services to unbanked rural and remote areas having population of above 2,000 or even below 2,000," he said.

The RBI has earlier asked all commercial banks and RRBs across India to open banking services, in any form, to every village in the country with a population of around 2,000.

TGB has issued several thousand biometric cards to disburse wages under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA) and pension under the National Old Age Pension (NOAP) schemes.

"The process is on to bring all the MNREGA and NOAP beneficiaries under biometric cards system to make their payment at the door step," he said.

Sabar said: "Going by the national trend of all banks, the amount of NPA (Non-Performing Assets) to total advance (gross) stood at 4.41 percent this year as against 2.80 percent of last year."