Commerce
minister, Kamal Nath has sought the prime minister''s intervention
to ensure clarity in the SEZ Act. Nath has also taken
up the RBI''s clarification on treating SEZ loans as real
estate lending with the prime minister, reports CNBC-TV18.
Meanwhile,
the Board of Approvals cleared 18 SEZ proposals yesterday
taking the total tally to 181. The board will be meeting
again today to consider the pending proposals. The commerce
minister believes that policy uncertainty will not slacken
investments.
However,
union rural development minister Raghuvansh Prasad Singh
advocates cautiousness and says that all aspects of the
SEZ policy must be considered before the government takes
a decision.
"I
am of the opinion that all aspects of India''s past, present
and future and all possible situations must be considered
with respect to SEZs and this matter must be rethought
and reviewed," said Singh.
Bankers
have also sounded a note of caution on the issue of SEZ
funding. After ICICI Bank''s KV Kamath insisting on more
clarity, even Anil Khandelwal, CMD of Bank of Baroda said
that there is need for more clarity on the policy.
"There
is need clarity in policy. SEZs are of national priority.
So as PSU banks, we have to respond to that," said
Anil Khandelwal, CMD, Bank Of Baroda.
In
an accompanying development, Fitch ratings has sounded
a note of caution for the banking sector, on worries that
unabated loan grown may lead to a "systemic crisis".
Fitch had moved India from the "low risk" category
to the "moderate risk" category earlier this
month.
Fitch
says that 30 per cent loan growth seen in the banking
space could lead to higher than average indebtedness.
Responding to the Fitch statement that it may have to
move Indian banks to a higher risk category because of
their frenetic pace of loan growth, RBI governor YV Reddy
responded by saying that this was too judgmental.
Reddy
also said that global growth may have moderated but inflationary
expectations are still hardening. He said that it might
be too early to say if he will stop hiking interest rates.
|