Hyderabad, July 18 -- Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday said the Centre was committed to providing timely institutional credit to deserving individuals to help them become entrepreneurs and expand their businesses.

Addressing the Credit Outreach Programme in Narasaraopet, Andhra Pradesh's Palnadu district, Sitharaman said banks had transformed their lending approach and public confidence in the banking system had improved.

Sitharaman, along with chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu, distributed loans worth Rs.3,216 crore to 1,03,246 beneficiaries under various Central schemes. The beneficiaries included 15,000 DWCRA women and 13,355 entrepreneurs.

Jointly organised by the Union finance ministry and public sector banks, ...