Bengal plans to borrow Rs 59,955 crore in the fourth quarter, according to an indicative calendar on market borrowings by various states and Union Territories that was released by the RBI on Friday.
The apex bank said the states will raise Rs 4.13 lakh crore in the fourth quarter. Besides Bengal, states such as Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Bihar, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Punjab and Assam are in the fray.
The RBI also said the Centre will raise Rs 3.93 lakh crore through the issue of Treasury Bills in the quarter. Treasury bills are short-term instruments issued by the central government for up to 364 days.
The RBI also issues dated securities on behalf of the Centre to meet its borrowing targets for the fiscal.
The gross borrowing target for the fiscal is Rs 15.43 lakh crore, with Rs 6.55 lakh crore to be raised in the second half; the borrowing schedule for the second half was announced in late September.
In T-bills, the Centre will raise Rs 1.16 lakh crore from 91-day paper, Rs 1.6 lakh crore from 182-day T-bill and Rs 1.17 lakh crore from 364-day bills.
Penal charge
The RBI gave banks and other regulated entities, including NBFCs, time till April 1 to implement its modified norms for levying penalty charges on loan accounts. The earlier deadline was January 1.
In August, the RBI issued a circular on ‘’Fair Lending Practice — Penal Charges in Loan Accounts’’.
``However, considering that certain clarifications and additional time have been sought by some regulated REs to reconfigure their internal systems and operationalise the circular, it has been decided to extend the timeline for implementation of the instructions by three months,” the RBI said.
Banks, NBFCs and others have been asked to ensure that the instructions are implemented in respect of all the fresh loans availed from April 1, 2024 onwards.
In existing loans, the switchover to new charges should be ensured on the next review or renewal date falling on or after April 1 but not later than June 30.
Concerned over banks and NBFCs using penal interest as a revenue tool, the RBI had modified the norms in August.
