Effectiveness of Debt Recovery Tribunals in Resolving NPAs of Banks in India: A Critical Analysis

Debt Recovery Tribunals (DRTs) were established in the country in a phased under the recovery of debts due to Banks and Financial Institutions Act, 1993. DRTs were established to expedite recovery from non-performing assets (NPAs) in case of Banks and Financial Institutions (FIs). Even though initially DRTs were quite effective but over the years their effectiveness has reduced. The present study has been conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of DRTs in terms of recovery percentage and disposal time. An attempt has also been made to find the deficiencies in DRTs which are affecting their effectiveness and give recommendation for addressing the same. The study has relied on primary data as well secondary data from 2011-2019. The secondary data has been collected from DRT website and RBI publications. The study has concluded that DRTs have not remained an effective mechanism for recovery of NPAs. It has identified the deficiencies in DRTs affecting their effectiveness and given suggestions for improving the same.