Shri Prasad informed
delegates from various countries that Post Office Savings Bank is one of
the oldest and largest savings institution in the country and it also
has the largest outreach in rural India, and more so, in backward and
remote areas. The minister expressed happiness that the major asset of
the postal institution, that is its connectivity on the ground is sought
to be used for promoting e commerce in the country.
Secretary, Department of Posts Srimati Kavary Banerjee, in her key note
address informed that the Department’s network of thousand post offices
significantly out-numbers the combined number of branches of all
commercial banks taken together. The post office savings schemes hold a
total of 312 million accounts, which is more than the number of accounts
held by any commercial bank. More importantly, the social sector
disbursements done through the post offices have succeeded in bringing a
total of about 80 million previously unbanked individuals into the fold
of formal financial institutions in the last five years. All these have
led to a change in the perception about the Post Office among the
public as also within the organization. Consequently India Post is now
perceived as a potential key facilitator of financial inclusion in the
country, having a role in promoting the country’s socio-economic
development, she added.
The theme of this year’s Postal Savings Banks Forum will be "The rising force of postal banking in the retail banking market".
