India needs big and world-class banks, says Nirmala Sitharaman

Group 1 - The Indian government is focusing on the need for large, world-class banks and is in discussions with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and lenders to enhance the banking sector [1][2] - The Finance Minister expressed confidence that a reduction in GST rates would stimulate demand and initiate a positive investment cycle [1] - The government has been actively pursuing the privatization of IDBI Bank, having sold a 51% stake to Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) in January 2019, and is now looking to sell a total of 60.72% stake [3][4] Group 2 - The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has approved the reclassification of LIC as a public shareholder, facilitating the strategic divestment of IDBI Bank [5] - The government has undertaken significant consolidation in the public sector banking space, reducing the number of public sector banks from 27 in 2017 to 12 by August 2019 through major mergers [6][7] - Infrastructure development remains a key focus for the government, with capital expenditure increasing fivefold over the past decade [8]