Wide variation in banking coverage:RBI

Kochi, Sep 19: There is a wide gap in the reach of banking services between various Indian states, with 89 per cent of the adult population in Kerala having deposit accounts as compared to 21 per cent in Nagaland, RBI Executive Director V S Das said today.

Inaugurating a national conference on 'Financial Inclusion and Beyond:Issues and Opportunities for India', Mr Das said that the national average was 59 per cent, which was quite low compard to developed countries such as Britain, where it was more than 90 per cent.

Stating ''financial inclusion'' of the disadvantaged sections, particularly in rural areas, was a major concern of the RBI, Mr Das said that the State Level Bankers Committees had been advised in April this year to initiate action for indentifying at least one district in their state/union territory for 100 per cent financial inclusion.

A National Pilot Project for Financial Inclusion (NPPFI) had also been launched in Pondicherry for a period of one year from January one this year. The NPPFI envisages opening of saving bank accounts for all eligible individuals at their doorsteps in the rural and semi-urban areas by using simplified 'Know Your Customer' (KYC) procedures.

It also includes issue of 'grameen credit cards' and 'kisan credit cards' to all eligible farmers to enbale them to source their input, consumption and post-harvest requirment; a one-time settlement scheme to bring in existing defaulted borrowers to the pilot project after settlement of dues; strengthening self-help groups by giving general line of credit based on the past records; providing social security through insurance products; IT connectivity at branch level and facilties like overdraft to all eligible individuals, preferably at the lower segment.

The RBI was also keen to utilise the vast network of post offices, numbering 139,000 in the rural areas. An initial project had been started in Maharahstra to purvey rural credit in association with post offices. If found successful, it would be extended to other states also, he said.

UNI