If the government wants banks to lend more (‘Will banks now start lending more?’, April 29), it has to make the banks more comfortable about lending to firms. Mere statements by the RBI or by the ministry of finance will not make banks lend more. The way to get banks to lend is to help them refinance some of these loans made to, say, sensitive sectors like exports where there are large job losses. The government can also step in with some interest rate subvention in such loans — since the repayment liabilities will reduce, the loans will automatically become more secure.
P Jayaram, New Delhi