The board of Allahabad Bank on Monday approved the merger proposal with Indian Bank, making the amalgamated entity the seventh largest public sector lender of the country. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had on August 30 announced the consolidation of 10 state-run banks into four large-scale lenders. "In terms of SEBI (listing obligations and disclosure requirements), the board of directors in a meeting held today has considered and accorded its in-principle approval for amalgamation of Allahabad Bank into Indian Bank," the city-based lender said in a statement.