Patna, Aug. 25: Chief minister Nitish Kumar on Saturday came down heavily on banks for their “non-co-operative attitude” in advancing loans to students and the poor.

“Problems exist at the lower level (of bureaucracy) in banks. Bank officials need to strengthen micro-management system to achieve desired results,” Nitish said in his valedictory address at “Bihar: Banking on Inclusion” conclave organised by the planning department in association with Asian Development Research Institute (ADRI) and the magazine, Governance Now.

Stating that people in the state depend on banks to deposit their money thus facing no competition from other financial institutions, the chief minister said banks take deposits but refuse credit (loan) to the people.

Recalling his experiences during his on-going Seva Yatra and weekly janata durbar, Kumar said: “Banks are completely non-co-operative when it comes of giving education loans to students. We faced problems when we wanted to give money through banks to purchase uniforms and bicycles, as problems cropped up in opening bank accounts for the students.”

Nitish said banking services should be brought under the purview of Citizen’s Charter on the lines of the state government’s Right To Public Service Act, through which 2.14 crore people have availed services, fixing a time-frame for getting the work done, failing which officials would be punished.

“Bihar needs to grow at 25 per cent for the next few years to catch up with the national average provided the state gets co-operation from banks, financial institutions and the Centre,” the chief minister said.