The government is examining a proposal for the merger of IDBI with the IDBI Bank, Union Minister of State for Finance Anandrao Adsul said in Jaipur on Friday.

A standing committee of the finance ministry had been looking at the possibility of the merger of the financial institution's operations with the retail banking business of IDBI Bank, Adsul, who is in charge of the expenditure, banking and insurance departments, told reporters.

About the non-performing assets of the public-sector banks, the minister said due to the Securitisation Act and one time settlement scheme, the NPAs had declined from Rs 56,000 crore (Rs 560 billion) to Rs 18,000 crore (Rs 180 billion).