The Banking of India

February 8, 2011

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) wants to extend banking services to 79,000 villages that today lack anything resembling banks.

The goal is to ensure a banking presence in every village with more than 2,000 residents by March 2012, RBI officials said in announcing its latest banking outreach program, earlier this week.

The RBI has already identified 170 villages that will serve as models; every household in model villages will have savings accounts at banks.

K.R. Ananda, a regional director with the RBI, said villagers will be schooled on the importance of savings and offered financial assistance, through a network of door-to-door bankers, according to a report published by The Hindu Business Line on February 6th.

RBI officials used the occassion to urge rural villagers to educate their children, adding that local banks will be encouraged to provide loans for higher education.

Americans purchase $75 billion a year in money orders from non-banks

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