Negotiate with banks for reducing interest rates, Naidu tells offiicals

Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu asked officials to hold talks with banks and Financial Institutions to bring down interest rates on loans, saying the State could save nearly ₹7,000 crore if the rates were reduced. At a meeting with Ministers, Secretaries and Heads of Departments at the State Secretariat on Wednesday, he said some institutions had raised interest rates during 2019–24 owing to the damage caused to the State’s image in that period, leading to a waste of public money. He noted that the NDA Government had already saved ₹512 crore last year and ₹1,000 crore so far this year through loan rescheduling.

The Chief Minister also expressed concern that ₹1,170 crore in Central funds remained unspent across departments. He directed that the amount be utilised by December 20 and that utilisation certificates be sent to the Centre to secure further releases.