IPPB Launch: Narendra Modi Hits Out at Congress, Says They Left India’s Economy on a Land Mine

The IPPB will operate on smaller scale without involving any credit risk.

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday launched India Post Payments Bank (IPPB), country’s largest payments bank in New Delhi. The payments bank of the Indian postal department will take the bank and banking services to the doorstep of every citizen. Addressing a gathering at the launch of IPPB, PM Modi hit out at Congress party saying,”Just a few days after our government came to power, we realised that the Congress had left the nation’s economy on a land mine.”

He also talked about the Central Statistics Office’s (CSO) latest data which revealed that India’s GDP at 2011-12 prices in the first quarter of 2018-19 registered a growth of 8.2 per cent.

Just a few days after our government came to power, we realised that the Congress had left the nation’s economy on a land mine: PM Narendra Modi speaking at the launch of India Post Payments Bank (IPPB) in Delhi. pic.twitter.com/NxTnEdLZSX

— ANI (@ANI) September 1, 2018

“On one hand Indian sportsperson have given the best ever performance at the Asian Games 2018, on the other hand our country has got a medal because of the GDP figures that have come out yesterday,” Modi stated.

Referring to the loan defaulters, he assured,”Swift action is being taken against 12 biggest defaulters who were given loans before 2014. I want to assure the country that none of these big loans was given by our government.”

Key things to know about IPPB

The IPPB will operate on 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.

The IPPB will have 650 branches and 3250 Access Points across the country. All the 1.55 lakh Post Offices in the country will be linked to the IPPB system by December 31, news agency ANI reported.

The freshly-minted payments bank will accept deposits of up to Rs 1 lakh, offer remittance services, mobile payments/transfers/purchases and other banking services such as ATM/debit cards, net banking and third-party fund transfers.

IPPB will leverage tech platforms. It will use Aadhaar to open accounts, while a QR card and biometrics will drive authentication, transactions, and payments. Grameen Dak Sewaks will be armed with smartphones and biometric devices to handle transactions.
It will offer 4 per cent interest rate on savings accounts. IPPB has teamed up with financial services providers such as PNB and Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance for third-party products like loans and insurance.

The government owns 100 per cent in IPPB, which has been set up under the aegis of the Department of Posts, and will offer products and services through multiple channels such as counter services, micro ATMs, mobile banking app, messages and interactive voice response.