Along with these, the banks will also have to show their foreign currency assets and liablities, movements in non-performing assets (NPAs) and provisions along with lending to sensitive sectors as defined by the RBI from time to time. "Instruction will be issued by the RBI on the aforesaid disclosure parameters shortly," RBI deputy governor SP Talwar said.

Disclosing this at the 21st Bank Economist Conference on Monday, Talwar said that the audit sub-committee of the Board on Financial Supervision (BFS) has decided to implement these disclosure norms from the year ending March 31, 2000.

The apex bank has warned public sector banks that the time has come for them to close non-viable and loss-making branches and relocate stafftherafter.

Senior bankers present at the meet hailed the steps announced by the RBI. "It will definatly help in imparting greater transaperncy to the banks balance sheets. At a time when more and more banks are going public this sort of information needs to be disclosed," a senior banker with a large public sector bank said.

According to Talwar, during the last couple of years, the range and extent of disclosures has been gradually increasing so as to provide a clearer picture to informed readers of balance sheets. The banks are now required to disclose the break up of the provisions made towards NPAs, depreciation of investments capital adequacy ratio and the level of the net non performing assets.

"I would like to stress that the banks paticularly those in the public sector have to respond with speed and effectiveness to certain core issues for survival like--- control over costs, issues in regard to closure of non-viable and loss-making branches and staff redployement arising therefrom, technologyimprovements, solutions for Y2K problem by March 1999 with appropriate contigency plans and preparation for meeting Euro deadlines and redesigning forex dealings systems to manage euro riks," Talwar said in his speech.

The RBI deputy governor added that increased capital requirements along with further tightening of prudential norms are being done to bring Indian banks in line with international best practices. "Declining spreads and highly competitive environment are bound to put pressure on banks to seriously examine measures like introduction of VRS reducing rate of interest particularly on short term deposits and closure of loss making units", he said.

Outlining the management strategy for the future for banks, Talwar said, "In my view the management strategy for future of any bank should have a three pronged approach--effective credit management and recovery of NPAs, introduction of adequate risk management systems and improving internal control mechanism."