Mobile-based wage payment for NREGA workers

The state department of panchayati raj, private sector lender Axis Bank and Airtel M Commerce Services Ltd have inked an agreement for starting mobile based disbursement of wages to job card holders of Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA).

Axis Bank has done the pilot study for the project, the first of its kind in the country, in two blocks in Odisha- Ghatgaon in Keonjhar district and Saintala in Bolangir district.

Under this exclusive arrangement Axis Bank has partnered with Airtel M Commerce Services Ltd (AMSL), a subsidiary of Airtel, to work as the business correspondent and process the disbursements via Airtel money.

Airtel retailers will function as customer service points and ensure a seamless process especially given Airtel’s wide retail presence across the state.

“This is a unique model which will address the last mile solutions to reach out to the beneficiaries. We hope to replicate this model in other areas based on the feedback and response generated from this venture,” Nitin Jawale, director, special projects, panchayati raj department.

Debarchan Mishra, regional distribution head (east) and executive vice president, Axis Bank said, “I am hopeful that this model of banking will be highly useful since it works on any phone with low cost of operation. Going forward, Axis Bank hopes to offer these solutions in many other states.”

The beneficiaries of this agreement would be MGNREGA job card holders who will now get their daily wage payments directly through their mobiles. The beneficiaries would have to subscribe to the Airtel money service to link their mobile number to their Axis Bank accounts.

Based on the remittance made by the panchayati raj department to the beneficiary’s accounts on the due date, they will directly receive the amount on their mobile.

These customers will also receive alerts via SMS and voice message and will be able to easily withdraw cash from any nearby Airtel retail outlet by simply authorizing the transactions on their mobile.

For each withdrawal, the beneficiaries will receive a message on his mobile containing a secured PIN (personal identification number) which they need to convey to the retailer who, in-turn, will complete the transaction and hand over the cash to the beneficiary. The beneficiary will continue to earn savings bank interest for the funds parked in the accounts. The beneficiaries can also easily carry out deposits and remittances directly with their mobiles.