°Banks need to make loans more affordable,

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday called on banks to make interest rates more affordable at a time when the government wants industries to build capacity.

- AATHIRA VARIER & ANJAIJ KU MARI

She described the current high cost of borrowing as "very stressful".

"..when you look at Indiais growth requirements, you can have so many different Voices coming out and saying, the cost of borrowing is really very stressful. At a time when we want industries to ramp up and move building capacities.. bank interest rates will have to be far more affordable,', Sitharaman said at State Bank of India (SBI's) annual business and economic conclave. Retail and small borrower lending rates are linked to the Reserve Bank of India's policy repo rate, while corporate loans depend on the marginal cost of funds-based lending rate (MCLR).