Kolkata: Oriental Bank of Commerce (OBC), a Government of India undertaking has chalked out expansion plans for the relatively untapped North-Eastern region of India. For this purpose, it has identified small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the region and special emphasis will be given to SMEs in infrastructure, plastics, paper and machinery manufacturing.

Priority will be given to Self-Help Groups (SHGs) while extending the micro-credit. OBC has a long history of providing banking services in the region and is instrumental in providing credit to entrepreneurs in steel, tea and jute sectors. Explaining the bank's strategy R M Sharma, the bank's General Manager, Eastern Region said, "OBC will balance its portfolio by providing credit to SMEs. Besides, in eastern region, the small and medium enterprises appear to be holding out bigger promises than the larger ones.”

Mobilization of low cost deposits is a major thrust area for the bank. The share of current and savings deposit in the bank's total deposits is presently poised at 25 percent and it is expected to grow up to 40 percent by the end of March 2008," he added.

One of the major constraints faced by the bank in achieving its target is the limited branch network in this region. OBC has a total of 45 branches in the region and 39 of them are in West Bengal, four in Assam and two in Sikkim. The bank had applied to the RBI for expansion of its network and has got approval to open four more branches in the region by March 2008.