National Housing Bank NHB functions as a specialised housing finance institution and is a subsidiary of which organisation?

Introduction / Context:
National Housing Bank is an apex level institution created to promote housing finance institutions and provide refinancing support for housing loans in India. Understanding its ownership and parentage is important in banking awareness, because it shows how housing finance is linked to the broader monetary and regulatory framework of the country.

Given Data / Assumptions:

- The question asks National Housing Bank is a subsidiary of which organisation. - The options list State Bank of India, Reserve Bank of India, Bank of India and the World Bank. - We are dealing with the institutional relationship at the time this static GK question was framed. - We assume knowledge of RBI role as the central bank.

Concept / Approach:
National Housing Bank was set up in 1988 under the National Housing Bank Act as a wholly owned subsidiary of the Reserve Bank of India. The idea was to create a dedicated apex financial institution for housing while keeping it within the overall framework of the central bank supervision and policy direction. Though shareholding patterns can evolve over time, static general knowledge questions in many exam books state that NHB is a subsidiary of the Reserve Bank of India, which is the relationship expected in this question.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Recall that NHB has historically been described in textbooks as the apex housing finance institution under the umbrella of the RBI. Step 2: Remember reading that NHB was initially wholly owned by the Reserve Bank of India. Step 3: State Bank of India and Bank of India are commercial banks, not the central bank, so they are less likely to be the parent of an apex level housing finance institution. Step 4: World Bank is an international organisation and does not directly own NHB as a subsidiary. Step 5: Therefore, choose Reserve Bank of India as the correct answer.

Verification / Alternative check:
Banking awareness notes and older official documents from RBI describe National Housing Bank as its wholly owned subsidiary established to accelerate housing finance. Even where ownership structures later change, exam oriented material continues to treat Reserve Bank of India as the parent organisation for the purpose of static GK questions. This makes option b the standard expected response.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
State Bank of India, though a large public sector bank, is itself regulated by RBI and is not the parent of NHB in the sense meant by the question. Bank of India is another commercial bank and does not own National Housing Bank as a subsidiary. World Bank may provide financial or technical assistance to housing projects but does not directly own NHB.

Common Pitfalls:
Some candidates see the word bank in the name and incorrectly assume that NHB must be linked to State Bank of India simply because SBI is the largest commercial bank in the country. Others may overthink and choose World Bank due to its involvement in development projects. Keeping in mind that RBI creates and supervises financial institutions at the apex level helps anchor the correct answer in memory.

Final Answer:
National Housing Bank is a subsidiary of the Reserve Bank of India.