Previous Year Question
With reference to the Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency Limited (IREDA), which of the following statements is/are correct?
It is a Public Limited Government Company.
It is a Non-Banking Financial Company.
Select the correct answer using the codes given below:
Only 1
Only 2
Both 1 and 2
Neither 1 nor 2
Correct Answer: C
Detailed Solution
The Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency Limited was established in 1987. It is a Government of India enterprise functioning under the administrative control of the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy.
Statement 1 is correct: IREDA is a Public Limited Government Company. Its principal objective is to promote, develop and extend financial assistance for projects connected with new and renewable sources of energy and energy efficiency and conservation.
Statement 2 is correct: IREDA is a Non-Banking Financial Company/Institution. It has operated within RBI’s regulatory framework as a systemically important non-deposit-taking NBFC.
IREDA provides loans and other financial assistance mainly for projects involving:
Solar energy
Wind energy
Small hydro power
Bioenergy and waste-to-energy
Energy efficiency and conservation
New and emerging clean-energy technologies
IREDA is not a commercial bank. Merely providing loans does not make an institution a bank; banks and NBFCs differ in their regulatory status, deposit-taking permissions and payment-related functions.
Therefore, IREDA is both a Public Limited Government Company and a Non-Banking Financial Company.