BoB launches online education loan

Mumbai, Feb 8 (UNI) Bank of Baroda (BoB) has launched its "Online Education Loan" with a 48 hour 'in-principle' sanction facility and which can be availed from the bank's 2,800 plus branches, here today.

Upto Rs 15 lakh can be sanctioned in the brackets of Rs 4 lakh, Rs 4-7.5 lakh, and Rs 7.5-15 lakh under different schemes like ''Baroda Gyan'', ''Baroda Scholar'' and commercial pilot loans.

The interest rate would depend on the amount and duration of the loan taken with a special discount of one per cent made available for female applicants.

Speaking at the launch, Bob Chairman and Managing Director Dr Anil Khandelwal said, ''It took us 100 years to think about education loan and just two years to get it online.'' The scheme was more of fulfilling a social responsibility than a marketing scheme and the BoB has dispersed Rs 315 cores in education loans since April 2007, Mr Khandelwal said.

Welcoming the scheme, IIT Mumbai Director Dr Deepak B Pathak said, ''An important activity for students have been simplified given the changing times. However, we might do well to remember the millions who can't even afford to click a mouse.'' UNI ZC SR AG2037