Patna: The Bihar State Cooperative Bank and the Bhabhua District Central Cooperative Bank will soon receive licences from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to launch mobile banking services, Cooperation Minister Ram Kripal Yadav said on Wednesday.
An agreement has also been reached to expand the branch networks of cooperative banks, with several District Central Cooperative Banks set to open new branches in the first phase.
New Branches And Digital Services
The first phase includes new branches for the District Central Cooperative Banks of Magadh, Ara, Sasaram, Munger-Jamui, Begusarai and Supaul, in addition to the existing branch at AIIMS Patna.
Ram Kripal Yadav directed cooperative banks to move towards modern, digital and customer-focused banking services. He instructed officials to introduce WhatsApp banking within one month and mobile banking within three months.
The minister also directed that a facility allowing customers to make payments through thumb impressions be introduced by November.
PACS To Be Fully Digitised
Officials were instructed to prepare a clear action plan for onboarding new account holders. Special camps and awareness drives will also be organised to encourage more people to open accounts with cooperative banks.
The meeting also decided to fully digitise 4,477 Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS) across Bihar.
Measures Against Counterfeit Currency
To help prevent the circulation of counterfeit Indian currency, instructions were issued to install UV lamps and BIS-compliant note sorting machines.
The equipment will be installed at all District Central Cooperative Banks in border districts and at relevant branches of the Bihar State Cooperative Bank.
Secretary Dharmendra Singh, Joint Registrar Kameshwar Thakur, Bihar State Cooperative Bank Managing Director Arvind Kumar Paswan and other officials attended the meeting.
