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| May (First) 2013 |
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| DELHI PRESS MAGAZINES : WOMAN'S ERA |
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WOMAN'S ERA / ARTICLES
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| BANKS |
THE ROLE THESE PLAY IN OUR LIVES |
By Romola Shanbhag
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| There can be no controversy
about the importance of
money in our lives. It is
imperative that we not only
generate money but that we
also ensure that it is saved
and increased. Naturally,
therefore, it is banks which
are our trusted allies in this
enterprise.
It is just not the educated and the
affluent who use the services of
banks. Nowadays, the domestic
maid, the car driver and even the
beggar on the street boasts of a bank
account. For them, the bank is the
safest and most trustworthy agency
for stocking hard-earned money.
We have come a long way –from
saving money in underground pots or
stashed in secret nooks. Now we
have full-fledged banks, extension
counters, ATMs and such like units
within walking distance from any
place. In fact, it is the banking
industry which has catapulted our
country towards a booming economy
which even the recent recession has
not managed to dent. A healthy
economy is primarily dependent on a
healthy banking system, and
thankfully, India can boast of the
latter.
In 1920, three banks wer
amalgamated as the Imperial Bank
of India with private share holders
who were primarily Europeans. Other
banks soon made their appearance.
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In 1865 the Allahabad Bank was
formed exclusively by Indians and in
1894, the Punjab National Bank Ltd.
arrived with its headquarters in
Lahore. Between 1900 and 1913
came the Bank of India, Central Bank
of India, Bank of Baroda, Canara
Bank, Indian Bank and Bank of
Mysore.
When the Reserve Bank of India
was opened in 1935, it was, within a
decade, given the responsibility of
supervising banking practices in India
as the Central Banking Authority,
under the Banking Companies Act.
But what really transformed
banking was nationalisation. It all
began in 1955, after Independence,
when the Imperial Bank of India was
nationalised and its banking facilities
spread to rural and semi-urban
areas. The State Bank of India was
formed to act like a principal agent of
RBI and to handle the transactions
of the Central and State
governments.
Between 1960 and 1969, Indira
Gandhi undertook major
nationalisation of banks and by 1980
more than 80 per cent of the banking
segment came under government
ownership. Nothing better could have
happened to the banking industry .
Earlier, before nationalisation,
business was sluggish, deposit
mobilisation slow and the confidence
level of the public in banks was low.
All this changed. Nationalisation
brought public faith and advances
and deposits took a huge increase of
11000 per cent.
PHENOMENAL SERVICE
Today, the services which banks
extend to their clients are nothing
short of phenomenal. There are so
many facilities with so many
liberalisation practices. Banks now
offer 24-hour ATMs, phone and
Internet banking, credit and debit
cards, travellers’ cheques, loans and
insurance schemes, apart from
deposit facility with attractive interest
rates tailored for individual needs.
There are different kinds of banks:
retail banking which deals directly
with individuals and small
businesses, business banks which
provide services to mid-market
businesses, corporate banking
directed at large business entities,
private banking providing wealth
management services to high net
worth individuals and their families,
and investment banking relating to
activities of the financial markets.
With these speciality banks,
clients can choose the one which
suits their needs most satisfactorily.
With the cut-throat competition
which surrounds the banking industry
working towards the benefit of
customers, the latter is able to
choose the bank comfortably.
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