Faced with opposition from the
Finance Ministry to India Post getting into banking fray, Communications
Minister Kapil Sibal today said his department will battle it out to ensure
that it gets a lender's licence.
"We have been trying very hard
to persuade the Finance Ministry and we are yet to go some way to convert the
Postal Department into a post bank. We have been fighting this battle and we
are not going to give it up till we reach a logical conclusion," he told
reporters after inaugurating the Postal Department's National Data Centre at
Navi Mumbai near here.
When asked about the Finance
Ministry's opposition to the idea of India Post turning into a bank, Sibal
sounded optimistic of reaching a favourable conclusion, saying his Ministry
will take this to the Cabinet which will resolve the issue. But he did not say
when he will do so.
The RBI is processing applications for
banking licences from among 25 entities, including the Department of Posts and
top corporates like Aditya Birla Groups and Anil Ambani Group.
The Postal Department's contention
is that it can leverage its reach of over 1.55 lakh post offices across the
country. Of these, 1.4 lakh are in rural areas.
"The only department that can
do financial inclusion is the Postal Department," Sibal claimed.
Sibal said a host of services like
insurance premia payments, wages distribution and most importantly, avenues of
saving will be possible as a result of banking foray.
Sibal also announced that on
February 5, India Post will be launching automated teller machines for postal
savings bank account holders in New Delhi, Bangalore and Chennai.
The Postal Department's National
Data Centre, spread over 3,000 sq ft and located at the Dhirubhai Ambani
Knowledge City, will act as the nerve centre of all postal services, including
savings, insurance and speed posts tracking.
Source :
http://www.business-standard.com
