Continuous Growth in Gujarat's Banking Sector, Performance Reviewed at 191st SLBC Meeting

The 191st meeting of the State Level Bankers' Committee (SLBC), Gujarat, was organised by the Bank of Baroda on November 4, 2026, in Ahmedabad. The meeting was chaired by Shri Lal Singh, Chairman of SLBC Gujarat and Executive Director of Bank of Baroda. The performance of the banking sector for the quarter ending September 2026 was reviewed during the meeting, which revealed continuous growth in the state's banking sector.

According to a PIB report, during the September 2026 quarter, total deposits in the state reached ₹16.09 lakh crore and total credit reached ₹15.15 lakh crore. These figures recorded a quarterly growth of 8.77% and 8.69%, respectively. The reach of the banking network in the state is also significant, with 11,189 branches, 12,100 ATMs, and 49,257 active Business Correspondents currently operational. Additionally, the state's CD ratio stood at 94.16%.

Under the Annual Credit Plan (ACP) 2026-27, banks have achieved 76.71% of the annual target in the first six months of the financial year, disbursing credit worth more than ₹9.23 lakh crore. In this disbursement, more than ₹4.63 lakh crore was provided under the priority sector, achieving 72.86%.

Present at the meeting were Ms. Swagat Bhandari, Director, Department of Financial Services (DFS), Government of India (via video conferencing), Shri Amresh Ranjan, Regional Director of the Reserve Bank of India, Shri G. V. Sunil Kumar, Chief General Manager of NABARD, Ms. Prashasti Parikh, Managing Director of GLPC, Shri Mahesh Jani, Mission Director of GULM, Shri Amit Meena, Director of the Government of Gujarat, and Shri Ravish Kumar, Convener of SLBC Gujarat and General Manager of Bank of Baroda. Additionally, officials from various departments of the state and central governments and other stakeholders also participated in the meeting.

The committee discussed important issues such as agriculture, Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME), financial inclusion, social security schemes, Self-Help Groups (SHGs), NPS Sanchay, startup funding, digital payments, and cyber security. Particular emphasis was placed on increasing the flow of credit in districts such as Dang, Porbandar, and Navsari, where the CD ratio is low, as well as accelerating the reach of credit to agriculture and underprivileged sections.

The progress of SLBC's special campaign “Samuh se Samriddhi” was also reviewed, under which 4,615 new Self-Help Groups were linked with bank credit in the first fortnight. Furthermore, the initiative taken by GLPC to promote the livelihoods of Self-Help Groups through partnership with Amul parlours managed by women in 18,000 villages of Gujarat was appreciated. At the end of the meeting, Lead District Managers who showed outstanding performance in the second quarter of the financial year 2026-27 were honoured.