SHAMIRPET (JANGAON District): When an elderly illiterate P Bhagyalaxmi, who runs a grocery store, explains the use of a debit or ATM card, it is amusing. It is not just her but also all the villagers have got used to the cashless mode of payment within 15 days, thanks to proactive officers.
The village that has 2,600 population, over 1,000 bank accounts were opened within fortnight and now more than 2,000 people have bank accounts and ATM cards. “All those above 18 years of age have a bank account now,” explained S Narsing Rao of the village.
The district administration gave six swiping machines — three grocery stores, one water plant, one to panchayat office and one to a hotel in the village.
For the last 10 days they were using swiping machines and Bhagyalaxmi finds it easy now. “The amount is credited to my bank account instantly. Daily over 50 people use the card in my shop,” she explained.
Intense campaign
The village once was known for left wing extremism and was most backward in all parameters. The district administration had taken it up as a challenge to bring about a change. Ms. Bhagyalaxmi said Collector A. Devasena visited nine times within 15 days holding meetings late in the evenings after the farmers and working women returned home.
As the Collector explained the way of using cell phones for transferring money, they would all laugh at the way they were taught. “Oka chukka, rendu thommudhulu and muggu anthe,” she would say for “star99#, that is all”.
She devised her own language and symbols to convince the illiterate and semi-literate in the village.
Youth animators
A group of youth were selected in the village and trained in all modes of cashless transactions. These youth in turn would explain to the villagers who were just now catching up with the new concepts.
Speaking to The Hindu , Collector A Devasena said this was the third village in Telangana to be declared totally cashless transanctions.
She said 31 villages were in line where a similar exercise was going on. “Very soon we will declare Kodavaturu, Narsingapur, Banda Nagaram, Nashkal and Pembarthy villages as cashless transanction villages,” she explained.
However, the District Administration was finding difficulty in procuring swiping machines.
