Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis Saturday said the opening of India Post Payments Bank has started a new chapter in the history of country's economic progress.
He expressed confidence that the commencement of the IPPB would ensure the financial inclusion of people who were away from development.
He was speaking after inaugurating the Giragaum branch of the IPPB at the General Post Office here.
He said that there were about one lakh bank branches in the country and another three lakh IPPB branches would get added to this network.
"A major chunk of the population was deprived of financial development in the last 70 years. Now they have been connected through this financial inclusion," he added.
Fadnavis said an economic survey has revealed that the country has saved Rs 75,000 crore due to the digital payment system and direct transfer of benefit to beneficiaries.
He further said the emergence of e-mails, short messaging service and social media had put a question mark on the existence of the Postal department but new technology had unified it.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi Saturday launched the payments bank of Indian postal department at New Delhi that will take banking to doorstep of every citizen through an unmatched network of post offices and almost 3 lakh postmen and 'Grameen Dak Sewaks'.
India Post Payments Bank (IPPB) will be like any other banks but its operations will be on a smaller scale without involving any credit risk. It will carry out most banking operations like accepting deposits but can't advance loans or issue credit cards.
It will accept deposits of up to Rs 1 lakh, offer remittance services, mobile payments/transfers/purchases and other banking services like ATM/debit cards, net banking and third-party fund transfers.
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