BOMBAY Feb I Indias central bank chief called for new methods ol social lending to help the poor In his country and said current measures were not succeeding in bring ing down poverty level* re ports Reuter

Cumbersome lending procedure* inadequate super vision and at times apathy of bank staff have resulted In de laved and untimely credit which has been responsible for the large stale misutlllsation and default of credit. Reserve Bank ol India (RBI) Governor Chakravarty Hangarajan told a bankers meeting

Banking is one of the ser tors India s two-year M economic liberalisation progra mme targeted lor widespread reforms to raise profits and efficiency while reducing huge

bad debts

Rangarajan said India had over the years launched more than 57 schemes to reduce the number ol people living below the poverty line as defined un der Internationa} standard*

Nearly 40 per cent of the Indian population of 890 million. which is the world s second largest behind Chinas live below the povertv line

The country s major com mercial bank* were nation aliaed in 1969 and 1978 in two bouts This was to allow India's socialist style government* to direct commercial banks to provide 40 per cent of it* credit at concessional rates to farmers and artisans

Reform* launched in 1991 have now spread to banking, where huge debts run up through the concessional

lending,have put several bank* In deep trouble, according to analysts

Rangarajan said In fiscal 1992 93 (April March), the batiks assisted 2.1 million beneficiaries under one of the main schemes, the Integrated Rural Development Progra mme (1RDP)

But. he pointed out that even the IRDP had limited effect

The percentage of beneficiaries of IRDP who might have crossed the poverty line Is around 20 per cent.' he told the meeting, organised In Bombay by the Indian Banks Association and Foundation for Development Cooperation Ltd. Australia

The main reason for lower recoveries has been Incorrect identification, he added.