Anantpur : Financial inclusion, a government programme to ensure access to financial services for villagers, and timely and adequate credit where needed by vulnerable groups such as weaker sections and low income groups in rural areas is lacking the support of bankers. The programme was mooted to extend banking services in rural areas where such services are not available. Under the plan, all bank branches working in the district, will have to appoint business correspondents in villages allocated to them to provide banking services. Business correspondents, working like a bridge between banker and customer, help in making and receiving payments, collecting small scale deposits, habituating the customer to savings. They will get honorarium apart from commission from the banker. Though the programme was initiated by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), it remained a lacklustre plan with bankers showing no interest. In 806 villages in the district, bankers have appointed only 268 business correspondents so far. The Nabard, in its recently released loan plan schedule, said that the district needs five more banks.
Deccan Chronicle
