The Finance Minister, Mr Pranab Mukherjee, said that banking facilities would be extended to 73,000 villages by March 31 next year.

The banking facilities, including mobile banking, would be reached to areas with a population of 2,000 within the period, Mr Mukherjee said at the inauguration of a branch of the Oriental Bank of Commerce.

For this, banks should come forward since Rs 1,85,000 crore had been provided for rural development in the Budget, he said.