Scripting a new episode in rural banking, the Akshaya centres in the district will soon start functioning as Customer Service Points offering basic banking services to the people.
Various banking firms are making arrangements to enter into a contract with the Akshaya centres and improve their reach in villages.
So far, 123 Akshaya centres in various parts of the district are ready to cooperate with the new project, implemented under the Union government’s comprehensive financial inclusion programme named Sampoorn Vittiya Samaveshan (SVS).
The Akshaya centres will offer their services in the areas where the banking firms — both private and public sector banks — find it difficult to open an independent branch. They will also be an alternative to the practice of appointing business correspondents, who many a time fail to cater to the clients in the absence of better payments and other perks.
The service of Akshaya centres is being mainly sought as the banking firms in the district plan to open over 50,000 new accounts under the Union government scheme. There will be at least two bank account holders in each family on completion of the project. Enrolment of maximum number of women will be a priority under the drive.
Offering all the basic banking facilities, the Akshaya centres selected for the scheme will function with micro ATMs, biometric scanners, and uninterrupted Internet connectivity. The district administration has placed a request before Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd. to provide technical support to the Akshaya centres to settle connectivity issues.
The district coordinators of Akshaya say banking firms have started contacting the Akshaya centres to extend their operations in the rural areas under the Central scheme. “A few more banks are still to sign up with us; this will be cleared in a short time,” they said.
To make the programme a success, the district office of the Akshaya has appealed to the district administration to give maximum publicity to the Akshaya initiative. People were yet to be convinced that Akshaya could handle banking procedures safely, and this could be addressed through awareness campaigns, they said.
