The list of Priority Sectors identified in India and PSL lending norms

Priority Sector lending (PSL) means bank lending to those sectors that the Government of India and the Reserve Bank of India consider as important for the development of the basic needs of the country.  It is obligatory on the part of banks to encourage the growth of such sectors with adequate and timely credit.

The following are the different Categories of the Priority Sector;

Agriculture. (The lending to the agriculture sector will include Farm Credit (Agriculture and Allied Activities), lending for Agriculture Infrastructure, and Ancillary Activities).

• Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises.
• Export Credit.
• Education.
• Housing.
• Social Infrastructure.
• Renewable Energy.

Others.

1. Priority sector loans to the following borrowers are treated under the Weaker Sections category.
2. Small and Marginal Farmers.
3. Artisans, village, and cottage industries where individual credit limits do not exceed Rs 1 lakh.
4. Beneficiaries under Government Schemes such as the National Rural Livelihoods Mission (NRLM), National Urban Livelihood Mission (NULM), and Self Employment Scheme for Rehabilitation of Manual Scavengers (SRMS)
5. Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.
6. Beneficiaries of the Differential Rate of Interest (DRI) scheme.
7. Self-Help Groups.
8. Distressed farmers are indebted to non-institutional lenders.
9. Distressed persons other than farmers, with loan amounts not exceeding Rs 1 lakh per borrower to prepay their debt to non-institutional lenders.
10. Individual women beneficiaries up to Rs 1 lakh per borrower.
11. Persons with disabilities.
12. Minority communities may be notified by the Government of India from time to time
13. Overdraft availed by PMJDY account holders as per limits and conditions prescribed by the Department of Financial Services, Ministry of Finance from time to time may be classified under Weaker Sections.

In States, where one of the minority communities notified is found to be in majority, the above covers only the other notified minorities. These States and Union Territories are Punjab, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Lakshadweep, and Jammu & Kashmir

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