The Reserve Bank of India, on Tuesday, directed banks to offer doorstep banking services on pan-India basis to senior citizens and differently-abled persons. It sought strict compliance in this regard by April 30. In its directive, the central bank underscored that although banks were advised to implement the instructions regarding ‘Doorstep Banking Services for Senior Citizens and Differently Abled Persons’ by December 31, 2017, such services were yet to be offered by banks or were restricted to select branches.
In order to make the doorstep banking services for senior citizens and differently-abled persons effective, the RBI, in its latest directive, asked banks to develop a board-approved framework for determining the nature of branches/ centres where doorstep banking services will be provided mandatorily and those where it will be provided on a best effort basis and make the policy public.
The list of branches offering such doorstep banking services should be displayed/updated on the bank’s website regularly.
Banks should give adequate publicity regarding the availability of these services in their public awareness campaigns, the RBI said. The charges, in this regard, should also be prominently indicated in brochures and published in their websites.
The RBI directed banks to report the progress made in this regard to the Customer Service Committee of the board every quarter.