HomeCirculars › RBI/2006-2007/356

Credit Flow Monitoring Expanded to 103 Minority Districts

No longer current — replaced by Master Circular – Priority Sector Lending-Targets and Classification dated July 01, 2014
Source: Reserve Bank of India · RBI/2006-2007/356 · issued 27 Apr 2007 · ~2 min read
Quick answerRBI expands credit flow monitoring to minority communities from 44 to 103 districts with at least 25% minority population, excluding states where minorities are majority. Banks must report half-yearly data from April 1, 2007, and appoint a DGM/AGM-level officer for monitoring.

What changed

The Government of India directed RBI to monitor credit flow to minority communities in 103 districts instead of the earlier 44 districts. These districts have at least 25% minority population, excluding states/UTs where minorities are in majority (J&K, Punjab, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Lakshadweep). Banks must now furnish data at half-yearly intervals starting from April 1, 2007.

What it means for you

Banks must expand their monitoring framework to cover 103 districts, requiring additional branch-level tracking and reporting. This increases compliance burden but aligns with government priorities for financial inclusion of minority communities. Banks need to ensure their special cells and designated officers are equipped to handle the expanded scope.

Historical instruction — do not use for current compliance. This is what was required at the time; it no longer reflects current RBI requirements. If no replacement rule is linked above, that only means none is recorded on our register yet — it does not prove no later applicable rule exists. Confirm on the official RBI source below.

What banks were required to do at the time

Who it affects

All scheduled commercial banks (public and private sector), Branch managers in minority-concentrated districts, Designated officers (DGM/AGM) for minority credit monitoring, RBI's rural planning and credit department

❓ Common questions

Regulatory timeline

Built from our lineage records — each fact carries its provenance; missing history simply is not shown (never guessed).

Which districts are excluded from the 103 minority-concentrated districts?

Districts in states/UTs where minorities are in majority—Jammu & Kashmir, Punjab, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, and Lakshadweep—are excluded from the list.

What is the reporting frequency for credit flow data under this circular?

Banks must furnish data at half-yearly intervals, effective from April 1, 2007.

Do banks need to create a new special cell for this expanded monitoring?

No new cell is required; banks should use the existing special cell and designated DGM/AGM-level officer as per the Master Circular of July 5, 2006, but expand monitoring to the 103 districts.

📜 This document’s life story (1 recorded event, each backed by RBI’s own words)
Superseded by Master Circular – Priority Sector Lending-Targets and Classification dated July
📜 Read the original circular — full text as issued by RBI
RBI/2006-2007/356 RPCD.SP.BC.No. 83/09.10.01/2006-07 April 27, 2007 The Chairman/Managing Directors All Indian Scheduled Commercial Banks Dear Sir, List of 103 Minority Concentrated Districts having at least 25% minority population, excluding those States /UTs where minorities are in majority (J&K, Punjab, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland & Lakshdweep) As you are aware, Government of India, Ministry of Welfare has notified the following as minority communities :- i) Sikhs ii) Muslims iii) Christian iv) Zoroastrians v) Buddhists In this connection, all commercial banks, both in public and private sector, have already been advised to ensure smooth flow of bank credit to these communities. Instructions issued from time to time have been consolidated in our Master Circular RPCD.SP.BC.No.09 /09.10.01/2006-07 dated July 5, 2006 . The said instructions inter-alia provide creation of special cell and designating an exclusive officer in the rank of DGM/AGM to look into the problems regarding flow of credit to minority communities with a view to monitoring the performance of the banks. Data on the credit flow to the minority communities is collated by RBI on periodical basis and furnished to the Ministry of Welfare, Govt. of India, New Delhi. Presently, the flow of credit to minority communities is monitored for 44 districts specified in the Annexure II attached to the above circular. 2.Government of India have now advised that credit flow should be monitored in 103 minority concentration districts which have at least 25% minority population, excluding those States/UTs where minorities are in majority (J & K, Punjab, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland & Lakshdweep). List containing names of 103 districts is enclosed. The data may be furnished at half yearly intervals w.e.f April 1,2007. Revised Annexure II will be sent to you in due course. 3.You are advised to issue necessary instructions to your controlling officers and branches to specially monitor the credit flow to minorities in 103 districts as against 44 districts which are presently being monitored. 4. Please acknowledge receipt. Yours faithfully ( G. Srinivasan) Chief General Manager
Reproduced for reference with acknowledgment — Source: Reserve Bank of India · RBI/2006-2007/356 · issued 27 Apr 2007. The plain-English explanation above is BankPulse’s own independent summary.
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Official RBI source: https://www.rbi.org.in/Scripts/NotificationUser.aspx?Id=3468&Mode=0 — Plain-English summary by BankPulse (bankpulse.ai), reviewed by our expert reviewer, CA Amit Jain. Independent platform, not affiliated with the Reserve Bank of India; is our own plain-English paraphrase, not RBI’s original wording.
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