‘Digitisation must for financial inclusion’

• Financial inclusion can be achieved only through digitisation, according to Mr B. Sambamurthy, Director, Institute for Development and Research in Banking Technology.
• Speaking at a workshop on ‘Digitisation of Identity and the Financially Excluded’ here on Tuesday, he said only 40,000 habitats of 6.20 lakh villages were on the radar of financial inclusion.
• The cost and operational feasibility of digitisation would make financial inclusion possible, he added.

• There was a difference between business model and operating models in field, he said, adding: “How do we stitch an operational model for financial inclusion is important.”
• The last-mile connectivity, security and co-creation of viable technologies and methods were important issues, the IDRBT Director said.
• Mr Reddy Subrahmanayam, Principal Secretary, Department of Rural Development, Government of Andhra Pradesh, said it was important to arrive at an optimum cost of maintaining financial services in the villages.
• The digitisation of identity and financial inclusion might not always be the same and could have different implications based on the objectives.
• Financial inclusion should be made more comprehensive with regard to services being offered, Mr Subrahmanyam said.
• The apex cooperative credit society set up by AP Government, Sthreendhi, was making use of technology for all-levels of loan disbursals, the official added.
• The workshop was conducted by the Centre for Study of Culture and Society, Bangalore as part of a Ford Foundation-funded study on grassroots-level social impact of digitisation process of Aadhaar project in seven States.