Govt launches nationwide campaign to open bank accounts for unbanked
26 Nov 2016
The ministry of labour and employment in collaboration with Department of Financial Services has launched a nationwide campaign to open bank accounts for all wage earners - both in the organised and unorganised sectors - to ensure that every citizen is availing of banking services.
Starting today, the government in collaboration with state governments and local administration will organise special camps in every district at specific locations to facilitate opening of bank accounts, an official release said, adding that the government has decided to pursue this path of digital transactions more vigorously than ever before.
''We have already sent communications to all the state governments in this respect requesting their active cooperation.'' minister of state for labour and employment, Bandaru Dattatraya, said.
The minister said that the team comprising district magistrates, lead district manager of the bank and the labour officers of both the centre as well as state governments would decide the modalities of the camps, including the locations, within their districts and coordination with the banking channels.
Dattatraya has called upon all the establishments, employers and the employees associations and everyone associated and seek their active involvement and cooperation to ensure that the needy workers are facilitated to access these camps and avail the services therein. The campaign will continue in the coming days through the concerned banks, their business correspondents and camps as required.
In order to facilitate financial inclusion and to ensure transparency in all financial transactions, the government launched its flagship scheme of Jan Dhan Yojna in September 2014. More than 250 million bank accounts have been created since then across the country thereby linking the working class to the mainstream of financial /banking activities.
The DBT (direct benefit transfer) through this banking network has benefited millions of poor people in the country.
