100 access points under IPPB to be launched today

Kolkata: West Bengal will have 25 post offices in the state including the General Post Office (GPO) in Kolkata and 100 access points under the purview of India Post Payments Bank (IPPB) that will be launched across the nation on Saturday.

"To begin with, IPPB services will be available in 25 head post offices covering all the districts and some sub post offices which will be acting as access points. Our target is to cover all the 9,000 post offices in the state under the IPPB by December 31 this year," Arundhaty Ghosh, Chief Postmaster General, West Bengal Circle said. IPPB will spearhead the financial inclusion programme of the Department of Posts by removing the barrier for the unbanked population. "Our postmen and Gramin Dak Sevaks will be offering doorstep banking through out the state. IPPB will make banking and payments simpler. Using Aadhaar,

it will open paperless accounts in minutes and allow customers to make digital transactions with the help of QR codes and biometric authentication. A QR code eliminates the need for customers to remember their account numbers and PINs," a senior official of the postal department said.

The last mile delivery agent – the Postman will be equipped with a smartphone and biometric device enabling him/her to offer financial services and guidance.

IPPB will offer a range of products such as savings and current accounts, remittances and money transfer, direct benefit transfers, bill and utility payments, and enterprise and merchant payments.

Ravi Shankar Prasad, union Minister of Law and Justice and Electronics and Information Technology will inaugurate the Kolkata Branch of IPPB on Saturday in presence of Chief PMG (West Bengal) in a programme at

Mahajati Sadan.

It may be mentioned that the postal department is rolling out this project in 650 branches and 3,250 access points of IPPB simultaneously across the country on Saturday. The national level launch will be done by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Delhi.