Chittoor to have 1st India Post Payment Bank soon

Tirupati: In a major boost to rural banking, India Post is coming to the door-step of the customers with banking activities. The India Post Payments Bank (IPPB) launched its operations on January 30 in the country with the inauguration of two branches at Raipur and Ranchi simultaneously. The first branch of IPPB in south India will be opened at Chittoor later this month. The department claims that IPPB will become a game changer in the financial world. 

The target of the India Post is to open 650 branches by September 30, 2017, in the country. It will be backed by its 1.55 lakh post offices as banking correspondents and is likely to become the biggest bank in the world. In the first stage, a branch of IPPB will be opened in the district headquarters. Later, it will be extended to other branches. It is expected to provide the much-needed banking facilities in unbanked and under-banked areas.

In Chittoor district, HPO (head post office) is all getting ready for the inauguration of IPPB. It will start its operations at any time this month, though the date is not yet finalised, said the Tirupati division superintendent of post offices, G Sreenivasa Murthy. 

Speaking to The Hans, he said that the district will have two branches initially at Chittoor and Tirupati. The works to start the IPPB at Tirupati will be taken up during the second phase. And ultimately all sub-post offices also will have the branches of Payments Bank, he said.

The process of recruitment is going on at a brisk pace with the written examination already being conducted. The Punjab National Bank has provided the technical support for the IPPBs. It will not provide loans now, but provide all other banking services which the existing commercial banks are extending. The unique feature of the Payments Bank of India Post is that the postmen will bring the banking to the door-step of the customers. 

For this, the delivery staff of India Post will be equipped with smart phones, tabs and other devices. This will be of great benefit, particularly in the rural areas where 90 per cent of the India Post branches are located and the traditional banking could not go for various reasons.