Mandya MP Ramya has said she has requested the Finance Ministry to set up a branch of Bharatiya Mahila Bank, the proposed public sector all-woman bank, in Mandya district to facilitate women’s empowerment.
“Mandya district is likely to get the State’s first all-woman public sector bank by November,” she told The Hindu here on Wednesday.
The actor-turned MP was in Mandya on Wednesday to lay the foundation stone for a commercial complex on RAPCMS grounds, off Bangalore-Mysore Highway, here.
After the programme, Ms. Ramya said she had requested Minister of State for Finance Namo Narain Meena to set up the bank branch in Mandya. She had got a positive response from the Union Minister. The district was likely get the bank by November. Its location, however, was yet to be identified, she said.
The Union government has planned to set up the all-woman bank, with its headquarters in New Delhi and branches at a few select places across the country, by the end of this fiscal year. The government has approved Rs. 1,000-crore seed capital for the proposed bank. While the bank’s branches are proposed to start functioning in Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Indore Chennai and Guwahati by the second week of October, a few other places will have the banks branches by November-end, an officer of the Cooperative Department told The Hindu on the occasion.
The main aim behind establishing the all-woman bank in Mandya district was to empower women in the seven taluks and bring banking services on their doorstep. The proposed bank would promote economic empowerment among women, he said.
Though this bank would function like any other bank, it would give importance to schemes beneficial to women and encourage them to start their own industries/self-employment centres, he said.
According to another officer, the proposed bank branch would come up either Malavalli or Srirangapatna. Factors such as women’s population at taluk centres, literacy percentage among women and the quantum of financial transactions will be considered while identifying the location for setting up the bank. Ms. Ramya said she would get 25 more banks, including nationalised banks, to her constituency shortly. “I have already discussed with the authorities about opening branches of 25 more banks in Mandya district,” she said.
