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12,838 Loan-defaulters who took more than a million taka

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November 20, 2000 

Sangsad Bhaban--(UNB) - The number of loan defaulters, who took loan of Tk 10 lakh and above from scheduled banks, was 12,838 till June 30 this year, the Finance Minister told Parliament yesterday (Sunday).

Replying to a question of Kamal Ahmed Majumdar (Awami League-Dhaka), Shah AMS Kibria said the amount of default loan was Tk 16,260 crore 30 lakh. Till December 1999, Tk 1,515 crore 33 lakh was realised from the default loans.

In reply to a supplementary from Waziuddin Khan (AL-Pabna), the Finance Minister said the government has enacted the Bankruptcy Act, set up task force and special courts, and enhanced the power of Bangladesh Bank to expedite realisation of default loans.

Discipline has been restored in the banking sector, he said assuring the House that there would not be new bank loan defaulters in future following the policy and measures taken by present government.

Responding to Begum Husne Ara Wahid (AL), the finance minister said that per capita income in 1999-2000 was Tk 19,178 as against Tk 14,028 of fiscal 1995-96.

To a supplementary, he said the increase in per capita income had a positive impact on the poor people, reducing the number of those living under the poverty line.

Kibria attributed higher production in agriculture and industrial sectors and increase in exports to the growth of GDP to more than 5 per cent for last four years that contributed to the rise in per capita income.

In reply to another supplementary from Golam Faruq Ovi of Jatiya Party, he said public borrowing by government is a usual practice seen in different countries, including USA, France and UK. In USA, he said, public debt is counted not in terms of billion, but in trillion.

Public borrowing is needed by a government because of the gap in earning and expenditure, he added.

The Finance Minister told the House that business activities of foreign banks operating in the country might not be allowed to expand outside the capital, if they do not make long or medium term investment in Bangladesh.

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