Union Finance Minister, Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday said that banking access in Nagaland has improved dramatically over the past few years, with the number of villages lacking any banking touchpoint dropping from 1,153 to just 15.
Responding to a query on inadequate banking and digital financial access in several districts, Sitharaman said that the Centre is closely reviewing the remaining gaps and will ensure full coverage.
A banking “touchpoint,” she explained, includes a brick-and-mortar bank branch, ATM, Bank Mitra, Common Service Centre offering banking services, or an India Post Payments Bank outlet—any one of which within a five-kilometre radius qualifies as access.
“Today, the number of villages without a touchpoint has come down to 15, and these too will be covered soon,” she disclosed media persons during a press briefing at Niathu Resort.
The Minister added that some data indicates certain blocks may still be without banks, but said the specifics need verification.
“A block is much larger than a village. I need to confirm whether the reference is to missing touchpoints or to the absence of brick-and-mortar branches,” she said.
Sitharaman noted that she is examining detailed data on banking facilities across Nagaland. “Whichever the measure—touchpoints or branches—we will analyze the gaps and do the needful,” she assured.
Rejects claims Nagaland is being taken advantage of in road tenders
Responding to a query on repeated tenders for the same road stretches and whether Nagas were being taken advantage of, Sitharaman dismissed concerns that Nagaland is being unfairly treated in the award of NHIDCL road tenders, asserting that the tendering process is transparent and uniform across the country. She said there was “no reason to view it that way.”
“The tender process is transparent. Whoever bids must comply with the rules and deliver quality road-laying. If the quality road laying has not been done, the NHAI, which is the authority for laying national highways, will pull up those people, blacklist them, not allow them to participate in any future tender. That’s a standard thing for all over the country,” she said adding that this applies equally to Nagaland.
She acknowledged road damage as a recurring issue across India, especially after the monsoon, and not something unique to Nagaland. She said post-monsoon, in many parts of the country roads are severely damaged. “And again we are going to lay those parts also, which can be due to heavy rain, due to some very heavy vehicles which probably cannot ply on that road also keep plying,” she said..
Sitharaman said that while remote areas—such as those in Nagaland—may face unique challenges, it should not be assumed that the State is being neglected. “So please do remove from your thought that something is being done, people in Nagaland are being taken for granted. No,” she said adding both she and the Prime Minister are “keen to develop the Northeast,” pointing out that high-end AI-related training programmes with top companies are being implemented in Nagaland—“something not happening anywhere else.”
“We want to reach out and make sure things happen here,” she reaffirmed.
Says Centre committed to supporting Nagaland’s development despite terrain challenges
When asked whether she was satisfied with the visit regarding implementation of schemes in Kiphire district, she said that she was satisfied with the implementation of Central schemes in Nagaland, but acknowledged that the State continues to face unique challenges due to its difficult terrain and dispersed population.
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The Minister said the Centre remains “very eager to help Nagaland” overcome such constraints so that “every part of the State develops equally.”
On concerns about the feasibility of two-wheeler ambulances introduced through Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) support, Sitharaman said the initiative was not imposed from outside but was recommended by local authorities after assessing ground realities.
“They are much better than waiting for a four-wheel large ambulance. At least you have immediate access to some medical facility,” she said.
The State Bank of India, she clarified, had consulted district officials and hospitals, who suggested motorbike ambulances as the most practical option for emergency response in difficult terrain.
Asked whether such two-wheeler ambulances could be replicated elsewhere in the country, the Minister said they should be used “wherever they are useful.”
During the media interaction, the Finance Minister briefed about her visit to the state. She said that she reviewed developmental progress in the Aspirational District of Kiphire, inaugurated new youth training initiatives in cutting-edge technologies, and interacted with beneficiaries of various central schemes. The visit, she said, was part of the Centre’s ongoing commitment to ensuring equitable development across Northeastern states.
Sitharaman said her primary focus was to assess the performance of Kiphire district under the Government of India’s Aspirational Districts Programme, which covers 112 districts nationwide. The programme monitors socio-economic indicators in areas such as health, education, nutrition, agriculture, and women’s empowerment, with monthly reviews led by the Prime Minister through the PRAGATI platform.
PRAGATI is a program which the honorable Prime Minister holds via video conferencing, linking up with the districts and the district administration so that he is directly informed of the progress of various schemes which are launched, she disclosed.
The Minister said central ministers, including those from the Home, Culture, Defence, External Affairs, and Finance Ministries, frequently visit the Northeast to review progress and extend support. “More than 700 ministerial visits have taken place across the Northeastern states, and the Prime Minister himself has made around 70 visits,” she said.
During her visit to Kiphire on Wednesday morning, Sitharaman chaired a comprehensive review with district officials on key performance indicators under the Aspirational Districts Programme. A credit outreach programme was also organised with several banks to enhance financial inclusion.
She said the outreach covered retail, agriculture, MSME, personal, and startup loans, alongside collateral-free Mudra loans and Kisan Credit Cards. “Banks had conducted pre-visit verification in villages, collected data digitally, and identified eligible beneficiaries. Today, they extended loans to them,” she informed.
The Minister interacted with women beneficiaries, including Lakhpati Didis, to gauge the impact of government schemes. She also visited an Anganwadi centre and supported district-level infrastructure through corporate social responsibility (CSR) assistance, including equipment and ambulances for the district hospital.
In Kohima, she said, she reviewed new training initiatives aimed at creating employment opportunities for Naga youth in high-demand sectors. The first programme, implemented through NIELIT, will bring experts from the Tata Group’s semiconductor facility in Assam to train youth—even those with Class 10 or 12 qualifications—across various stages of semiconductor testing, assembling, packaging, and marketing, she said.
The second programme, launched in partnership with Cyient, aims to train young people in coding, robotics, 3D printing, and AI-based handloom applications. The initiative targets both rural and urban youth.
Sitharaman also reviewed centrally sponsored special assistance provided to Nagaland for capital asset creation.
Chief Minister, Neiphiu Rio, Deputy Chief Ministers, TR Zeliang and Y Patton were also present during the press briefing.
