DK becomes first district in State to provide RuPay cards

Micro ATMs will be placed in 166 primary co-operative societies and branches

Dakshina Kannada district became the second district in the country after Raigad in Maharashtra, to introduce the facility of debit cards to farmers and customers of the Central Co-operative Banks.

With the South Canara District Central Co-operative Bank (SCDCC) introducing RuPay Kisan Card to the farmers, a large number of farmers with their accounts in Central Co-operative Banks in the district, who were deprived of electronic payment system facility, will now get an opportunity to use debit cards like any other customers of commercial banks. The SCDCC management, introduced RuPay Kisan Card for farmers and RuPay Debit Card for its other customers, with the assistance from NABARD, at a formal programme at the bank’s head office in the city on Tuesday.

Speaking on the occasion, SCDCC Chairman M N Rajendra Kumar said that the SCDCC was the first co-operative bank in the State to introduce the facility, wherein nearly 90,000 farmers with Kisan Credit Card will avail the facility of debit card. Micro ATMs ill be placed in all the 166 primary co-operative societies and in their branches, and in all the branches of the SCDCC Bank, enabling the RuPay Kisan Card holding farmers and RuPay Debit Card holding customers to swipe and withdraw or deposit money in their account.
Farmers who have availed Kisan Credit loans can open an account with the SCDCC Bank through Primary Co-operative Societies and make use of the debit card facility.

Aadhaar number can be linked to the same account, for availing the government subsidy facilities. The account holders can use the debit card in any of the ATM machines with RuPay symbol. The SCDCC Bank has plans to introduce internet banking and inter-bank mobile payment system in the days to come, Rajendra Kumar said.

NABARD extends support

Launching the facility, NABARD Chief General Manager B R Chinthala said that the Central government has directed the NABARD to introduce core banking solutions or electronic payment systems in all the Central Co-operative Banks at the earliest.

Though debit cards were first introduced in a co-operative bank in Raigad in Maharashtra, Dakshina Kannada is the first district to introduce the facility in a full-fledged manner.

“If such facilities are not offered to customers, there is a danger of CCB customers, migrating to commercial banks. Therefore, the NABARD intends to introduce the facility in all the CCBs of Karnataka within six months, following the footprints of Dakshina Kannada. The NABARD has extended a financial support of Rs 1.75 crore to the SCDCC Bank for introducing debit card facility and we are ready to offer the required amount to any of the co-operative banks in the State,” he said.

Further, he said that the RuPay system was more advantageous for the banks in cost cutting, as the banks normally shell out Rs six per transaction to the US based companies, in Master and Visa cards.

The RuPay gateway system is designed by the Government of India, and the banks need to shell only 40 paise per transaction. The government has entrusted the NABARD, the task of ensuring that all co-operative banks are brought under RuPay.

“The RuPay cards are not just restricted to transact business from ATMs of co-operative banks or Point-of-Sale (POS) machines, but also enable the transaction of commercial establishments anywhere.

RuPay Kisan Cards and RuPay Debit Cards were symbolically distributed to five farmers and five customers, on the occasion.