Solar ATM Set Up By SBI At Banni

Public sector lender, State Bank of India has set up its first solar operated biometric ATM at Dhordo village in Banni, Gujarat. Through this move, the bank aims to serve a dual purpose of being both eco friendly and reaching out to the rural people. The ATM which is solar operative has been found to be better than the conventional ones which consume as much as 1000 watts of power and needs air conditioned environment to run properly which means another 1500 watts of power. This ATM will make life more convenient for the residents who earlier had to travel more than 80 kms for any sort of banking transaction. More than 60 ATM cards have already been handed out to customers by the bank. Since it is a biometric ATM, even illiterate people can access it by their thumb impression. The customer segment targeted mainly by the machine are border area villages, BSF jawans, teachers, and employees of a corporate company besides maaldharis. The ATM was inaugurated on January 19, 2011 at the hands of Principal Chief General Manager of Reserve Bank of India, Prabal Sen.  A K Bera, Regional Director of Reserve Bank Of India, Ahmedabad, also attended the function. Terming the event as a landmark, Shri Prabal Sen said that Banni grassland is now linked to international banking.