Last 3 years of NPA recovery resulted in 1.7 lakh seized properties.

In the last three financial years, in accordance with the laws on the recovery of non-performing assets of public sector banks more than 1.7 lakh properties which have a market value of Rs 2.3 lakh crore were taken over or confiscated, the government said Parliament on Monday.

In response to the question in Lok Sabha, junior finance minister Anurag Thakur said that between 2016-17 and 2018-19, the properties linked to 1.45 lakh NPA accounts were obtained through the Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest (SARFAESI) Act, debts recovery tribunals and national company law court.

Another 64,400 properties related to NPA accounts, including the nature or quantity of the loan or the nature of safety or the judiciary process, were not taken over because of a number of factors, he added.

The banks have experienced an increase of bad debt in recent years, estimated at Rs 9.4 lakh crore at an end of March when the RBI forced lenders to recognize NPAs in their books, but the slowdown accented the problem.

The government and the regulator have taken a number of steps, including the IBC’s implementation and strengthening SARFAESI in order to help to recover bad debt. Several banks in the public sector had suffered a record amount of NPAs which caused massive bank recapitalisation.

Over recent months, the recovery of loans has shown signs of improvement. In the past four financial years, more than Rs 3.35 lakh crore of NPAs, of which near the Rs 1.3 lakh crore over 2018-19, have been depleted.

The report by rating agency Crisil has estimated that IBC has been responsible for almost Rs 70,000 crore of loan recovery in the past financial year. However, some borrowers and others, such as vendors, have repaid their dues to banks imposed by the IBC to settle the case before they were admitted to the National Company Law Tribunal.