BHUBANESWAR: The cabinet on Friday approved a proposal under which brick-and-mortar infrastructure will be offered to banks to roll out their services in all 4,373 unbanked gram panchayats of the state through customer service point (CSP plus) outlets with a budgetary support of Rs 500 crore.
The cabinet presided over by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik approved the scheme that will be implemented in coordination with six public sector banks - State Bank of India, Punjab National Bank, UCO Bank, Union Bank of India, Bank of Baroda and Bank of India.
Announcing the decision, Finance Minister Bikram Keshari Arukha and chief secretary PK Jena told mediapersons, financial inclusion is a high priority agenda of the government, but it still remains a critical challenge as banking penetration in the state is quite low. Out of 6,798 gram panchayats in the state, around 65 per cent do not have brick and mortar branches.
The finance minister said since banking is an essential service for financial inclusion, every gram panchayat in the state needs to be provided with a brick and mortar branch for uninterrupted services. He said the state government has announced the scheme as the progress of setting up brick and mortar branches in unbanked gram panchayats is slow.
The scheme will be implemented in a phased manner from 2023-24. The state government will provide rent free space to the banks for five years. Besides, the government will also bear one-time expenses for fixed cost and recurring expenses for three years, he added.
Stating the scheme will enhance the coverage of financial inclusion in the state, the minister said, people residing in unbanked gram panchayats will have easy access to all kinds of banking services free of cost. Senior citizens, differently-abled people and pregnant women will get doorstep banking services and avail the direct benefit transfer of the government in a timely manner.