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Synopsis Prior to initiation of reforms in 1991, Indian banking industry suffered from lack of competition, low capital base, inefficiency and high intermediation costs. Ever since the bank nationalization of 1969, the banking sector had been dominated by the public sector along with a high degree of financial repression characterized by administered interest rates and allocated credit.

Banking sector reforms of the last two decades have placed greater emphasis on structural measures and improvement in standards of disclosure and levels of transparency in order to align the Indian standards with international best practices. Reforms have brought about considerable improvements as reflected in various parameters relating to capital adequacy, asset quality, profitability and operational efficiency. The key objective of reforms in the banking sector in India has been to enhance the stability and efficiency of banks.

An outstanding feature of banking sector reforms in India has been the emergence of micro credit as the most suitable and practical alternative to the conventional banking in reaching the hitherto unreached poor population. The Self-help Group (SHG) – Bank Linkage Programme was formally lunched in the year 1992 as a flagship programme by National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) and aptly supported by the Reserve bank of India (RBI) through its policy support.

This book contains 25 research papers focusing on varied aspects of Indian banking, micro finance and SHGs, penned with an in-depth analysis by academics and research scholars and duly edited by a renowned author. The book will be of immense help to all those interested in the study of new innovations in Indian banking in the changing global business scenario.