KASARGOD: The cash to GDP ratio in India has increased to pre-demonetisation levels of 12% in 2019-2020; and since the outbreak of the pandemic in March, the currency in circulation has risen by another 10% to Rs 26.9 lakh crore in October.
But if there is one place where banks are earnestly pushing Digital India and digital payments, it is Belloor, a panchayat bordering Karnataka in Kasaragod district. For decades the panchayat has been denied an automated teller machine (ATM), putting at hardship the people, who are mostly daily-wage workers and small entrepreneurs.
The panchayat has two banks -- Kerala Gramin Bank at Kinningar and Kasaragod District Cooperative Society Bank at Belloor -- but no ATM. The people have to depend on ATMs in Karnataka at Aralapadav or Eswaramangala, which are 12.5km away; or in Kasaragod at Mulleria and Perla, which are 12 km away; and another ATM at Badiadka, 14 km away, said Rajagopala Kaipangala K, a farmer who also makes solar lights that prevent crop raids by wild animals.
The distance may appear not far, but in this hilly panchayat, there is hardly any bus service connecting these places, said panchayat president M Latha. There is only one bus who runs two services -- one in the morning and one in the afternoon -- from Kinningar, the commercial hub of the panchayat, she said.
Kaipangala said the Kerala Gramin Bank -- then North Malabar Gramin Bank -- was set up in the panchayat 38 years ago "when I was in class IV". "Now I am running around filing applications with the RBI and the two banks and the lead bank manager to set up an ATM in the panchayat," he said.
Without an ATM, the people are forced to depend on the branches to withdraw money. "The rush is so much that daily wage workers, workers of MNREGS, and office-goers lose half a day in the banks," said Latha.
On Mondays and days after holidays, Kerala Gramin Bank at Kinningar sees around 100 customers only to withdraw money, said its manager Jayakumar. On other days, there are on average 60 customers to withdraw money, he said.
But residents said the numbers could be high. "I leave my cheque with the tell in the morning and collect my cash in the afternoon," said Dr Thirumalesh Kuloor, who runs an Ayurveda clinic next to the bank. "I can do it because my clinic is close by. But for other people, they are losing a day's job," he said.
The panchayat president said COVID has increased their inconvenience. "The bank is understaffed, and we have to maintain social distancing and follow other protocols, which increase the delay," she said.
The situation becomes critical when there are hospital cases. "On Tuesday, a person had to be rushed to the hospital in the evening and the bank closed. The ambulance was waiting but the family did not have cash. Luckily, I had Rs 2,000 in my house which I kept for my household needs," said Lata.
'No plan to set up ATM'
The Kerala Gramin Bank's Kinningar branch has around 6,000 to 8,000 customers, accumulated in 38 years, and has an annual turnover of Rs 40 crore, said its manager. In contrast, the bank's Mulleria branch has a turnover of around Rs 80 crore, and it was started in 2011. To be sure, Mulleria has three ATMs.
But compare Belloor to Adoor, where Kerala Gramin Bank has an ATM though its turnover hovers around Rs 48 crore. When contacted, the regional manager of Kerala Gramin Bank Batty S Nidhi said the proposal for the ATM was pending before the district lead manager N Kannan, who is also the manager of Canara Bank.
Canara Bank is the sponsor of the Malappuram-based Kerala Gramin Bank. Lead manager Kannan said that banks do not need the permission of the lead bank to set up ATMs for the convenience of its customers.
"Yet, as the Lead Bank, we asked KGB to set up an ATM in Belloor. An ATM can reduce footfalls to the bank by at least 60% considering there are no ATMs in a 12km radius," he said. But the regional manager replied that the bank has no such plans to set up an ATM, he said.
The Lead Bank manager said KGB could deploy business correspondents, who can receive deposits and give cash directly to customers in rural areas. That was also not considered, he said.
So, TNIE contacted the regional manager again. He said he was in a meeting earlier and could not communicate properly. "We don't need the permission of the Lead Bank but we are not in a position to meet the requirement of an ATM now," he said. He claimed since the government was promoting digital payments, ATM manufacturers have withdrawn from the business and it was difficult to get the machines.