New Post Offices will be opened in this fiscal-Manoj Sinha

New Post Offices will be opened in this fiscal-Manoj Sinha 

The Government has planned to open 81 Sub-Post Offices and 100 Branch Post Offices during the current financial year 2017-18 under the Scheme - "Rural Business & Access to Postal Network". Minister of Communications Shri Manoj Sinha said in a written reply to a question in the Lok Sabha today that the Department of Posts has also planned to open 66 Branch Post Offices by creation of new posts in 32 worst affected Left Wing Extremism (LWE) districts in the country under the aforesaid scheme in the current financial year.

Shri Sinha informed that out of 25,350 post offices in the States of the Country, 25,348 are computerised. He said that the Department of Posts takes action, from time to time, to induct technology and upgrade the system to cater to the growing market requirements and to increase revenue earnings. The Minister said that the increase or revision of rates of postal products and services is an ongoing exercise carried out from time to time and that there is no proposal to increase the rates of premium Business Development products at present.

More than 2 dozen companies want collaboration with India Post Payments Bank-Manoj Sinha

More than 2 dozen companies want collaboration with India Post Payments Bank-Manoj Sinha

Government has said that there are many companies who have approached the Department of Posts for collaboration with India Post Payments Bank. Replying to a question in the Rajya Sabha, the Minister of Communications Shri Manoj Sinha said that while the Department is in various stages of discussions with them, decision on formal partnerships will be taken after carefully evaluating the entire value proposition that they propose for the common man. The India Post Payments Bank had launched its two branches in Raipur (Chhattisgarh) and Ranchi (Jharkhand) on 30/01/2017 with basic products and banking services in partnership with Punjab National Bank.

Shri Sinha also said that the Payments Banks are different from regular Banks in the following fundamental ways as per RBI guidelines for Licensing of Payments Banks:

(i) Payment Banks are not allowed to undertake lending activities directly. It can accept demand deposits only that is savings and current accounts and will initially be restricted to holding a maximum balance of Rs. 100,000(Rupees one lakh only) per individual customer.

(ii) Payment Banks cannot accept Non Resident Indian (NRI) deposits.

(iii) The Payment Banks cannot set up subsidiaries to undertake non banking financial services activities.
A list of companies interested in partnering with India Post Payments Bank is attached at Annexure A.

List companies keen to partner with India Post Payments Bank.
1	YES Bank
2	Union Bank
3	Punjab National Bank
4	IDBI Bank (Industrial Development Bank of India)
5	SBI (State Bank of India)
6	Axis
7	Bank of Baroda
8	IDFC Bank (Industrial development finance company)
9	Deutshe Bank
10	Barclays Bank
11	Citibank
12	NABARD (National Bank For Agriculture & Rural Development)
13	HSBC (Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation)
14	MICRO SAVE
15	Allahabad Bank
16	Indian Overseas Bank
17	Dena Bank
18	FIA (Financial Inclusion)
19	Kotak Mahindra Bank
20	United Bank of India
21	HDFC Life (Housing Development Finance Corporation)
22	Royal Sundaram
23	PNB Metlife (Punjab National Bank)
24	ICICI Lombard ( Industrial Credit and Investment Corporation of India Bank)
25	ICICI Prudential ( Industrial Credit and Investment Corporation of India Bank)
26	Bajaj Allianz Life

PIB