Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday said the government will propose setting up a high-level committee on “Banking for Viksit Bharat”, signalling a structured push to align the sector with India’s long-term development goals.In her Budget speech, Sitharaman said the Indian banking sector today is marked by strong balance sheets and historic high profitability, underscoring the turnaround achieved over the past few years after a prolonged clean-up phase.The proposed committee comes amid expectations of a broader transformation roadmap for public sector banks, under the Viksit Bharat 2047 framework. The government has indicated that it wants Indian banks, especially PSBs, to emerge as globally competitive institutions, with an emphasis on governance, efficiency and technology adoption.Sitharaman’s remarks on balance-sheet strength and profitability align with recent data showing improved asset quality and sustained earnings across state-run lenders. PSBs had reported a combined net profit of Rs 93,675 crore in the first half of the current fiscal, while gross non-performing assets declined to multi-year lows.