................... GUDUR POST...........: August 2014

Sunday, August 31, 2014

Govt to increase DA to 107 %

Govt to increase dearness allowance to 107 p.c

The Government is likely to approve a hike in dearness allowance (DA) to 107 per cent from the existing 100 per cent, benefiting around 30 lakh Centre’s employees and its 50 lakh pensioners including dependents.

“The average rate of retail inflation for industrial workers from July 1, 2013 to June 30, 2014 works out to be 7.25 per cent. Thus the Central government will hike dearness allowance for it employees by 7 per cent,” an official said.

He said the Finance Ministry will now put a Cabinet proposal for approval of 7 per cent DA hike from July 1 this year as the revised Consumer Price Index-Industrial Workers data for June was released by Labour Ministry on Saturday.

With increase in DA, the pensioners will also gain as the benefit provided to them as dearness relief will be hiked to 107 per cent of basic pay.

The previous UPA government had increased DA to 100 per cent from 90 per cent with effect from January 1, 2014, on February 28 on the basis of agreed formula for revision of the allowance.

However, the central government employees’ union is not very enthused by the 7 per cent hike in the dearness allowance as their long pending demand of merger of DA with basic pay has not been given heed by 7th Pay Commission and the government.

“The erosion of value of wages is unbearable at 50 per cent dearness allowance. Now it will be 107 per cent. It is high time to merge DA with basic pay to provide relief to employees,” Confederation of Central Government Employees’ President KKN Kutty told PTI.

“We had summited our memorandum in this regard to 7th Pay Commission. They forwarded it to Central Government. We have apprised about the issue to the newly elected NDA government.

But no decision has been taken so far,” he said.

With merger of DA with basic pay, the salary and allowances paid in proportion of basic pay are increased. As per earlier practise DA was merged with basic pay once it breached 50 per cent mark. But the 6th Pay Commission has disallowed that.

Source : http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/govt-to-increase-dearness-allowance-to-107-from-100/article6366781.ece

Amendment to Rule 32, 56-81, Form 5 and Form 14 of CCS(Pension) Rules, 1972

To view Department of Pension and Pensioner's Welfare Memo No. 1/19/2013-P&PW(E) dated 29th August 2014, please CLICK HERE.

Exclusivity of Central Government Health Scheme to be phased out

Press Information Bureau

Government of India

Ministry of Health and Family Welfare

29-August-2014 10:46 IST

Exclusivity of Central Government Health Scheme to be phased out

Health Minister ushers in new era of transparency in departmental working.

Beginning September 1, 2014 the doors of 20 Central Government Health Scheme (CGHS) wellness centres in Delhi will be thrown open to senior citizens from among the public for free consultation.

Dr Harsh Vardhan, Union Health Minister, unveiled today a pilot project with wide ramifications for the future of public health care. There was wide criticism of the CGHS’ closed door policy towards people in need of medical help who were not family members of central government employees.

This is a pilot project for now. We will see how much demand accrues for the CGHS clinics and the ability of the clinics to handle demand from the general public before extending the service to more people in more cities,” Dr Harsh Vardhan said.

The service for senior citizens will be available on all working days between 1.30 pm and 3 pm. They will however not be given free medicines which is only for central employees.

On his first day in office, Dr Harsh Vardhan had announced that governance in all the outreach departments of the Ministry of Health would be made transparent. Within the first three months, the CGHS has completed a thorough review of its operations with the intention of identifying vulnerable spots which often offer scope for corruption.

The Minister has ordered that all information regarding medical claims that are pending for more than 30 days be put on the website, http://msotransparent.nic.in/cghsnew/index.asp. Over the years complaints had been piling up over the opaqueness of the process of reimbursing claims.

There were also complaints of CGHS doctors prescribing branded drugs beyond the approved list. Taking all factors into consideration, it has been decided that all beneficiaries and the public at large ought to know which the drugs are on the list and so they will be on view on the above-mentioned website, the Health Minister stated.

Dr Harsh Vardhan reiterated that henceforth only 1,447 generic and 622 branded medicines will be prescribed. Exceptions will be made only for patients suffering from cancer and similar diseases.

Additionally, it has been decided that CGHS beneficiaries will be provided with medicines for a maximum of one month. In case they are going abroad for extended periods, the medicines will be given for three months, he informed.

The CGHS doctors will be forbidden to prescribe investigations or implants that are not listed. A technical committee has been constituted to update the list of medicines, investigations, procedures, implants and other procedures of treatment.

Dr Harsh Vardhan said he is considering broad reforms in all wings of the ministry. “I encourage people, especially the media, to probe our affairs so that over time the employees realize the futility of trying to be corrupt. In addition, I will use information technology to prevent corruption at source.”

Saturday, August 30, 2014

REVOLUTIONARY GREETINGS ON THE EVE OF RETIREMENT ON SUPERANNUATION TO COM M.KRISHNAN ,THE MASS LEADER OF THE PEOPLE OF INDIA .

Friday, August 29, 2014

HAPPY VINAYAKA CHATURDHI TO ALL THE BLOG VIEWERS OF GUDURPOST AND WEL WISHERS

Soon, attendance of govt staff to be tracked online through attendance.gov.in

In what could be a revolutionary step towards monitoring and tracking the work of government officials, the NDA government has launched an “attendance website” to serve as a centralised database for all central government employees.

Though the website, attendance.gov.in, is still in the process of being developed, officials said it is expected to be modelled on the lines of similar websites of the Jharkhand government and the Department of Electronics and Information Technology.

To illustrate, the home page of the Jharkhand government’s attendance website gives the total number of employees present on the given day, along with graphical representations of “real-time attendance” and statistics on the percentage of people logging into office during different time slots, giving an idea of how many officials come to office during the designated timings. Further, a search for any registered employee yields complete details, along with the employee’s attendance/leave status.

Officials said the Centre’s website is likely to emulate most of these features and is expected to be as open to the public. “This level of open tracking takes transparency to another level, a key focus of this government,” said an official.

The Narendra Modi government had recently directed all central government offices to introduce Aadhaar-based biometric attendance systems. Officials said this website is the next step in that direction. The attendance record entered on the biometric devices in government offices will feed the data to this website, which will act as a centralised management information system (MIS) for attendance.

The database for all central government staff will be maintained centrally with a unique six digit ID provided for each employee, based on either the last six or first six digits of the Aadhaar number. Currently, the website has over 16,000 registered users, spread across 113 organisations. The maximum number of officials registered currently are from the Planning Commission. There are no active users or active devices yet.

For an organisation/ department to be registered, the nodal officers of that department will have to login to the website and create a master list of locations of their offices, designation of their offices and divisions/ units/ groups within their organisation. Following this, each employee can start registering online by submitting the relevant details along with Aadhaar numbers.

Source: http://indianexpress.com

COM. M. KRISHNAN, SECRETARY GENERAL, NFPE & CONFEDERATION & GENERAL SECRETRY, AIPEU GROUP-C (CHQ) RETIRES FROM SERVICE ON SUPERANNUATION ON 31-08-2014

Com. M. Krishnan, Secretary General, National Federation of Postal Employees (NFPE) & Confederation of Central Govt. Employees & Workers, General Secretary, All India Postal Employees Union Group-C (CHQ), Leader, JCM Departmental Council, Department of Posts, Member, JCM National Council will be retiring from service on superannuation on 31st August, 2014.

As per the decision of NFPE Federal Executive meeting held on 21-08-2014 and Central Working Committee meeting of AIPEU Group-C (CHQ) held on 22nd to 24th August, 2014 at Ongole (Andhra Pradesh) Com: M.Krishnan, will continue to function in the NFPE & P-3 CHQ till next Federal Council of NFPE (May 2016) and All India Conference of AIPEU Group-C (June 2015). He will also continue to lead the entire Central Government employees as Secretary General, Confederation till the next National Conference (2016).

Com: R.N.Parashar, Asst. Secretary General, NFPE, will take charge as Secretry General, NFPE from 01-09-2014 till next Federal Council as per the decision of NFPE Federal Executive meeting. Com.N.Subramanian, Deputy General Secretary, AIPEU Group-C (CHQ) will officiate as General Secretary, AIPEU Group-C (CHQ) till next AIC, as per the decision of CWC meeting of AIPEU Group-C.

NFPE CHQ, AIPEU Group-C (CHQ) and the CHQs of all other affiliated unions of NFPE extend our best wishes to Com.M.Krishnan and we are sure that he will lead us in the coming days also.

We are reproducing below the resolutions adopted by NFPE Federal Executive meeting and Central Working Committee meeting of AIPEU Group-C on the services rendered by Com.M.Krishnan. We are also reproducing a letter received from Shri.D.Theagarajan, Secretary General, FNPO.

I. RESOLUTION ADOPTED BY NFPE FEDERAL EXECUTIVE.

The Federal Executive of NFPE records its full appreciation for the yeoman service rendered by Comrade M.Krishnan as the Secretary General of NFPE. The Federation has scaled new heights during his stewardship and the unity of Postal regular employees and Gramin Dak Sewaks entered into a new chapter under his leadership. The united movements of Postal Workers under the banner of Postal JCA as well as the independent struggles under the mighty National Federation of Postal Employees are further strengthened under his able leadership. He provided a militant, progressive leadership with farsightedness for the betterment of Postal Workers. It is under his leadership that the NFPE claimed its historic vanguard role of leading the entirety of CG Employees under the platform of Confederation of CG Employees & Workers and it can be seen that the movement of central government employees has launched a powerful movement including strikes for the establishment of 7th CPC with Comrade M.Krishnan as its Secretary General. The integration of Postal and CG Employees with the entirety of Indian working class organisations in developing the path of united struggles against the neo-liberal policies of Government has further been cemented during his tenure. The leadership of confederation has come back to the Postal Organisation after a long period of 44 years and comrade Krishnan is leading the movement of CG employees in the path of struggle with firmness and it is noteworthy to mention that the unity of all JCM National Council organisations has reached its zenith with all coming together in championing the cause of three lakhs of Gramin Dak Sewaks and thousands of casual labourers in Postal and CG services due to his firm efforts. Ideological education of all cadres and employees through several All India and Regional Trade Union Camps under the banners of NFPE and Confederation; Concrete organisational steps for mobilizing the women employees of Postal Department as well as the Confederation level are some of the landmark achievements of Comrade Krishnan. The National Executive notes with happiness that all the affiliates of NFPE have always maintained a unified stand on all important activities of the Federation and this unity is due to the confidence created amongst all affiliates by the unifying leadership of Comrade Krishnan. The relinquishing of charge as the Secretary General of NFPE by him due to his superannuation from the Government Service is a huge loss to the movement but the Executive wishes to get his valuable advice and guidance to the Federation in the days to come. The National Executive places on record its unstinted gratitude to Comrade M.Krishnan for his able leadership to the historic organisation of NFPE not only as Secretary General but in numerous other capacities as well during his long service. The Federal Executive further resolves that Com.M.Krishnan will continue to be in the Federal Executive of NFPE even after handing over charge, till the next Federal Council meeting to be held in May 2016.

II. RESOLUTION ADOPTED BY CWC MEETING OF AIPEU GROUP - C (CHQ)

RESOLUTION ON THE SERVICES OF COM. M.KRISHNAN, GENEARL SECRETARY, AIPEU GROUP-C CHQ & SECRETARY GENERAL NFPE/CONFEDERATION

The Central Working Committee of All India Postal Employees Union Group ‘C’ (CHQ) held in Ongole (Andhra Pradesh) from 22.8.2014 to 24.8.2014 unanimously appreciates the sincere, superb and outstanding services rendered by Com. M. Krishnan as General Secretary of AIPEU Group ‘C’ (CHQ) and Secretary General of NFPE & Confederation during his tenure and like to place on record our whole hearted compliments,greetings and commendations to him and also acknowledge and recognize him for his unparalleled and appreciated service, which definitely resulted in charming the organization to new heights and also in settling many of the long pending demands of the Postal employees, especially Postal Group ‘C’ staff.

Com. M. Krishnan’s contributions in enhancing the prestige and image of AIPEU Group ‘C’ and thereby NFPE as well as the Confederation, will be remembered forever. In order to strengthen the organization and also to enhance the organizing capacity of the rank and file leaders the P3 CHQ & NFPE CHQ under the leadership of Com. M. Krishnan is maintaining constant communication with the general membership through website and also the Bhartiya Post and Postal Crusader monthly journals. The Trade Union classes and workshops organized by Com M.Krishnan, General Secretary for the NFPE and the Confederation has also contributed to a great extent in improving the quality of the organization. The need of the unity amidst the working class of all sections as well as Government employees, organized and unorganised workers, he preached and also practiced during his tenure upsurge him to the standard of a great statesman and a living legend. It is only Com M. Krishnan, who spends more than 20 hours daily for the working class all along during his tenure.

Com. M.Krishnan is a vivacious, vibrant,meticulous hard working and fully committed leader and is always working for the upliftment and welfare of the Postal employees, especially most down-trodden three lakhs Gramin Dak Sewaks. He has also extended his helping hand to all affiliated unions of the NFPE as the Member and then Leader of the JCM (Departmental Council) Staff side. He is also the All India Secretary General of the Confederation of Central Government Employees & Workers and is at the forefront in implementing all the programmes of the Confederation. The two days strike in February 2014 demanding the formation of the Seventh Pay Commission cut the ice and is one of the milestone in the history of the CG employees’ movement.

Com M.Krishnan has pioneered and crusaded his best in making the General Strikes conducted as per the call of Central Trade Unions and other Federations including NFPE against the anti-people and anti-worker policies of the Govt. a grand success in the Postal Sector. As the Secretary General, National Federation of Postal Employees he built the unity of all the Postal employees and conducted various trade union actions which have prevented the adverse effect of implementation of the new economic policy in the postal sector and to save the postal service as a public utility service. The mass recruitment to the extent of 30% and more in the postal is the major advancement of the Federation for which the skill and negotiating capacity of the Secretary General NFPE Com M. Krishnan are fully exploited. The fight against closure of 9797 Postoffices and 300 RMS offices in the name of McKincey Consultancy’s recommendation, the campaign against the New Postal Policy and the move of the Govt. to privatise postal services by granting licence to Courier Services, the Cadre Restructuring agreement etc are examples of his uncompromising stand, hard-bargaing and negotiating skill. His capacity to make inspiring and educative speeches and also taking class are worth emulating.

This Central Working Committee of this Union, while saluting Com. M. Krishnan for his devoted and dedicated service to the Central Govt. Employees and Postal employees, especially to the CHQ of AIPEU Group ‘C’ hereby resolved to utilize the valuable and experienced services of Com. M. Krishnan in the AIPEU Group ‘C’ (CHQ) till the next All India Conference to be held in June 2015.

III. E.MAIL RECEIVED FROM SHRI.D.THEAGARAJAN, SG, FNPO.

In regard to the services rendered by Sri M.Krishnan to the employees, I am unable to find words to express my appreciation towards him. In the last few years my relationship with him is very cordial and it became useful to the Postal employees. His manner of approaching official side with the issues of staff is bold as well as of positive nature .

So far I do not find negative attitude in him during the negotiation with official side. The retirement of Shri M.Krishnan from the Department is a great loss to the Postal employees in particular and central government employees in general .

In fine , I feel that a good friend of mine is retiring from the service.. I pray to the Almighty to shower blessings on him and his family members to give happiness and prosperity .

CONFEDERATION WRITES TO MINISTRY OF FINANCE

CLICK HERE TO VIEW

CWC, AIPEU GROUP 'C' HELD AT ONGOLE - A REPORT

In continuation of the CWCs already held at Hyderabad and Guwahati, the third Central working committee of AIPEU Group ‘C’ was convened at Ongole – A. P. from 22.08.2014 to 23.08.2014, after the Last AIC.

The NFPE & AIPEU Group ‘C’ flags were upraised by Com. Giriraj Singh President NFPE and Com. R. Sivannarayana CHQ President respectively. Out of 15 office bearers the following Thirteen were present.

1. Com. R. Sivannarayana, President

2. Com. Mangesh Parab, Working President

3. Com. N. Gopalakrishnan, Working President

4. Com. R. C. Mishra, Vice President

5. Com. C. P. Shobana, Vice President

6. Com. M. Krishnan, General Secretary

7. Com. N. Subramanian, Dy. General Secretary

8. Com. R. N. Parashar, Asst. General Secretary

9. Com. A. Veeramani, Asst. General Secretary

10. Com. Balwinder Singh, Financial Secretary

11. Com. U. K. Tiwari, Org. General Secretary

12. Com. S. A. Hamid, Org. General Secretary

13. Com. L. P. Saikia, Org. General Secretary

Com. Gaurang Dev Maity, Asst. General Secretary & Com. H. P. Diwakar, Asst. Financial Secretary were absent.

Out of 22 Circles, barring Delhi Circle in Organisational dispute all the 21 circles represented. Six Mahila Committee members were also present.

Com. Giriraj Singh President NFPE & General Secretary, AI RMS & MMS EU Group ‘C’ inaugurated the CWC session.

Com. R. Sivannarayana, President CHQ presided over the CWC and the Working Presidents & Vice Presidents assisted him during the session. On behalf of receiption committee Com. DASV Prasad, Circle Secretary, Andhra Pradesh Circle gave welcome address.

The General Secretaries of Sister unions and office bearers of NFPE & Leaders took part amidst the active session and presented their speech.

Com. Seethalakshmi, General Secretary, AIPEU Postmen & MSE/Group ‘D’

Com. P. Suresh, General Secretary, AI RMS & MMS EU MAILGUARDS & MTS GROUP 'C'

Com. V. K. Tiwari, General Secretary, All India Postal SBCO Employees Union Group ‘C’

Com. P. Pandurangarao, General Secretary, AIPEU-GDS (NFPE)

Com. P. Mohan, General Secretary, AIP Casual, Part Time, Contingent, Contract Workers Federation

Com. S. Raghupathy, Asst. Secretary, NFPE

Com. I. S. Dabas, Ex-General Secretary, AIPEU Postmen & MSE/Group ‘D’

Com. K. V. Sridharan, Ex-General Secretary, AIPEU Group ‘C’

Com. Manoharan, Working President, NFPE

Com. B. G. Tamhankar, Ex-President, AIPEU Group ‘C’ & NFPE

Com. Appanraj, Ex-General Secretary, All India Postal SBCO Employees Union Group ‘C’

The CWC eleaborately discussed in length and breadth of all the issues related to technology, Core Banking solutions, Core Insurance solutions, MACPs, Cadre restructuring JCM Departmental Council items, Postal JCA Charter of demands and programme of action and Confederation Charter of demands etc.

The following are the important decisions arrived by concensus in the CWC.

1. The Confederation’s effort for inclusion of GDS demands in 7^th CPC, DA merger etc has been endorsed.

2. The upgradation of pay scale of PA/SA and supervisory posts will be given due importance while oral evidence with 7^th CPC.

3. CWC full endorsed the AIPEU Group ‘C’ (CHQ) Memorandum to 7^th CPC.

4. The CWC endorses memorandum submitted by NFPE, JCM NC, Confederation, demanding minimum wage as per 15^th ILC, DA merger etc. Five promotion & inclusion GDS in true spirit.

5. The CWC decided to insist the department to implement the agreed cadre restructuring proposal at the earliest.

6. The CWC directed all Divisional and Branches as well as the Circle Secretaries to celebrate the Diamond Jubilee of NFPE in a befitting manner by holding conventions, meetings, recognize the services of old leaders etc.

7. The CWC requested all the divisions and branches to observe Postal JCA programme of actions to clinch all the 39 demands.

8. To end the election dispute of Delhi Circle, it has been decided to conduct General Body by CHQ itself on the basis of actual membership being existed in the divisions after obtaining legal opinion.

Further to the above decisions, the following resolutions have been passed unanimously.

1. In the wake of retirement of Com. M. Krishnan, General Secretary on 31.08.2014, Com. N. Subramanian Deputy General Secretary will officiate in the post of General secretary and Com. M. Krishnan will continue to function in the CHQ till ensuing AIC.

2. Repairing of building of Tarapada Bhawan at New Delhi may be executed as the present state of the building needs rewiring plastering of roof and floor etc. The proposed expenditure will be around Rs. One Lakh.

In precise, the CWC has gone in a constructive manner and the discussions were in detail. The decision taken above will be the road map to the CHQ for its effective functioning. The views and suggestions deliberated by the CWC members have been taken proper note of and they will be taken up with the Directorate and other levels.

CWC recorded its special and sincere thanks to the host of the CWC, (i.e) the Andhra Pradesh Circle Union and in particular to Com . D. A. S. V. Prasad, Circle Secretary, Andhra Pradesh and the divisional union, Prakasam division for volunteering to host the CWC and for the elaborate grand arrangements they made for this meetingand also the wide publicity given through posters and website.

Com. N. Subramanian, Deputy General Secretary has delivered vote of thanks on behalf of CHQ.

Com. D. A. S. V. Prasad Circle Secretary A. P. delivered vote of thanks on behalf of Receiption Committee.

In total, the CWC at Ongole ended with a historic success.

Thursday, August 28, 2014

NFPE WRITES TO DIRECTORATE

India Post to roll-out 1,000 ATMs

MUMBAI, AUG 26:

The Department of Posts will roll-out 1,000 ATMs in the next couple of years as part of its plans to hive off its financial services business into a bank.

Currently, the Department, which is also known as India Post, has two ATMs – one each at Chennai and Delhi.

Kalpana Tewari, Member (Planning & Technology), Department of Posts, said the ATM roll-out is linked to putting the post offices on the core banking platform.

Since 2012, the Department has put 676 Post Offices on the core banking platform. By end of March 2016, it expects to put 25,000 such offices on the platform, which entails networking of branches to enable customers to access their account from and perform transactions at any of these networked offices.

The Department has a budget of Rs. 5,000 crore for modernising its operations, said Tewari.

On the Department’s plans to foray into banking, she observed that while the intention of her Department is to enter the banking space, when and how it will be done remains to be seen.

Given that India Post has been handling financial services such as Post Office savings schemes, postal life insurance and money remittance services for several decades, it is likely that it will opt to become a payments bank.

Tewari said the Department, which has 30 crore accounts with deposits aggregating Rs. 6 lakh crore, as a standalone entity as well as a partner to banks is an ideal vehicle for achieving the goal of financial inclusion.

Among the challenges facing the Department include technology and setting up accounting systems, she added.

(This article was published on August 26, 2014)

India Post's banking application: RBI lobs ball in government's court

MUMBAI: Reserve Bank Deputy Governor R Gandhi today said the Union government has to take a final call on application for banking licence by the India Post, which has a network of over 1.5 lakh post offices countrywide.

"India Post is in the hands of the government. It is the government which has to approve them to come to us for licence," Gandhi told reporters here.

RBI, which approved only two names out of the 25 applicants in February this year, had left it to the government to decide on the way ahead with India Post's application.

According to reports, the Ministry of Finance, which controls 27 state-run commercial banks, is averse to the idea of the postal department getting into banking.

The RBI says that deepening the financial inclusion is a key objective of granting more licenses and according to some experts the existing network of India Post makes it an ideal candidate.

Meanwhile, on payment and differentiated banks, Gandhi said RBI has received a slew of suggestions on the draft guidelines and is analysing them. He reiterated that this is a priority area for the central bank and it will come out with final guidelines by the end of the year.

Gramin Dak Sewaks in rural areas are proposed as Business Correspondent of Banks in Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana

Press Information Bureau
Government of India
Ministry of Finance

27-August-2014 17:58 IST

Prime Minister to Launch Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana Tomorrow:

To Dedicate Mobile Banking Facility on Basic Mobile Phones to the Nation

The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi will launch the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) tomorrow at a function in the national capital. On this occasion, an exhibition on Technology and Financial Literacy will be organized. The Prime Minister will visit this exhibition. A film on ‘Financial Inclusion’ will also be screened. The Prime Minister will unveil a Logo and a Mission Document on Financial Inclusion. He will also distribute awards to the winners of the Logo contest and the ‘account opening kit’ to five beneficiaries on this occasion. He will dedicate the mobile banking facility on the basic mobile phone (USSD) to the nation.

The Union Finance Minister Shri Arun Jaitley, Minister of State for Finance, Ms. Nirmala Sitharaman, Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister, Cabinet Secretary and Governor, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) will be present on this occasion among other dignitaries.

Under PMJDY, Comprehensive Financial Inclusion based is proposed be achieved under the six pillars as under:

Phase I (15^th August ,2014-14^th August,2015)-

 Universal access to banking facilities

 Providing Basic Banking Accounts with overdraft facility of Rs.5000 after six months and RuPay Debit card with inbuilt accident insurance cover of Rs. 1 lakh and RuPay Kisan Card

 Financial Literacy Programme

Phase II (15^th August 2015-15^th August,2018)-

 Creation of Credit Guarantee Fund for coverage of defaults in overdraft A/Cs

 Micro Insurance

 Unorganized sector Pension schemes like Swavlamban

In addition, in this phase, coverage of households in hilly, tribal and difficult areas would be carried out. Moreover, this phase would focus on coverage of remaining adults in the households and students.

 All the rural & semi urban areas of the country is proposed to be mapped into Sub Service Area (SSA) comprising 1000-1500 households with an average 3-4 villages with relaxation in NE/ Hilly states.

 It is also proposed that looking to the viability of each centre around 74000 villages with population more than 2000 which were covered by Business Correspondents under Swabhiman Campaign will be considered for conversion into full fledged Brick & Mortar branches with staff strength of 1+1/1+2 in the next three years.

 All the 6 lakh villages across the entire country are to be mapped according to the Service Area of each Bank to have at least one fixed point Banking outlet catering to 1000 to 1500 households, called as Sub Service Area (SSA). It is proposed that SSAs shall be covered through a combination of banking outlets i.e branch banking and branch less banking. Branch banking means traditional Brick & Mortar branches. Branchless banking comprises of fixed point Business Correspondents agents, who act as representative of Bank to provide basic banking services.

 The implementation strategy of the plan is to utilize the existing banking infrastructure as well as expand the same to cover all households. While the existing banking network would be fully geared up to open bank accounts of the uncovered households in both rural and urban areas, the banking sector would also be expanding itself to set up an additional 50,000 Business correspondents (BCs), more than 7000 branches and more than 20000 new ATMs in the first phase .

 The comprehensive plan is necessary considering the learnings from the past where a large number of accounts opened remained dormant, resulting in costs incurred for banks and no benefits to the beneficiaries.

 The plan, therefore, proposes to channel all Government benefits (from Centre/State/Local body) to the beneficiaries to such accounts and pushing the Direct Benefits Transfer (DBT) scheme of the Union Government including restarting the DBT in LPG scheme. MGNREGS sponsored by Ministry of Rural Development (MoRD, GoI) is also likely to be included in Direct Benefit Transfer scheme.

 Keeping the stiff targets in mind, in the first phase, the plan would focus on first three pillars in the first year starting from 15^th August, 2014.

 The target for setting up additional 50,000 BCs is quite challenging given the constraints of telecom connectivity.

 In order to achieve this plan, phase wise and State wise targets for Banks have been set up for Banks for the period 15^th August, 2014 to 14^th August, 2015.

 In order to achieve a “demand” side pull effect, it would be essential that there is Branding and awareness of Business Correspondent model for providing basic banking services, Banking Products available at BC outlets and RuPay Cards. A media plan for the same is being worked out in consultation with banks.

 A Project Management Consultant/Group would be engaged to help the Department implement the plan.

 It is proposed to launch the programme simultaneously at National level in Delhi, at every State capital and all district headquarters.

 A web-portal would be created for reporting/monitoring of progress.

 Roles of various stakeholders like other Departments of the Central Government, State Governments, RBI, NABARD, NPCI and others have been indicated.

 Gram Dak Sewaks in rural areas are proposed as Business Correspondent of Banks.

 Department of Telecom has been requested to ensure that problems of poor and no connectivity are resolved. They have informed that of the 5.93 lakh inhabited villages in the country (2011 census) only about 50,000 villages are not covered with Telecom connectivity.