Recovering Kingfisher dues will be a tardy affair: SBI

Chennai: Government lender State Bank of India (SBI) on Monday said its increased non-performing assets (NPA) are due to its exposure to iron, steel and textile sectors while recovering the dues from Kingfisher Airlines would be a protracted legal affair.

"The ban on iron ore mining has affected the steel sector. But with the ban being lifted, things should look better," bank chairman Pratip Chaudhuri told reporters in Chennai. He was in the Tamil Nadu capital to donate a vehicle to a non-governmental organisation Vidya Sagar.

The bank had a fresh NPA slippage of around Rs 8,100 crore during the quarter ending December 31, 2012. The bank's gross NPA touched 5.30 per cent last quarter as against 4.61 per cent during the comparable period in 2011.

SBI said the recovery would be a complicated and protracted legal affair unless the company agreed for some quick settlement.

About Kingfisher Airlines, Chaudhuri said the recovery of the dues would be a complicated and protracted legal affair unless the company agreed for some quick settlement. According to him, some of the securities held by the bank for its loan to the airline are easily encashable.

He said the talks with the airline to restart operations have not been fruitful. The bank's exposure to Kingfisher Airline is Rs 1,700 crore and provision to the extent of Rs 1,650 crore have been made, he said.

Citing the savings rate at 30 per cent of the gross domestic product (GDP), Chaudhuri said the outlook for the banking sector is good and for the bank with a deposit growth of 15 per cent and 17 per cent growth in advances the outlook is promising.

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