Lok Sabha Question No. 1638 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-03-10
Subject: Lack of Banking Facilities in Rural Areas
Ministry: FINANCE
Asked by: Shri Rajesh Naranbhai Chudasama, Shri G Kumar Naik

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF FINANCE DEPARTMENT OF FINANCIAL SERVICES

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1638

ANSWERED ON MONDAY, 10 MARCH 2025/ PHALGUNA 19, 1946 (SAKA)

## Lack of Banking Facilities in Rural Areas

1638. Shri Rajesh Naranbhai Chudasama: Shri G Kumar Naik: Will the Minister of FINANCE be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the Government has assessed and taken note of the lack of banking facilities in rural / backward areas particularly at district and village level;
- (b) if so, the details thereof along with the norms/guidelines laid down by the Reserve Bank of India for opening of bank branches in rural/backward areas of the country;
- (c) whether the Government has received any proposal to increase the banking facilities in uncovered areas;
- (d) if so, the number of bank branches particularly Scheduled Commercial Banks (SCBs) proposed to be opened in unserved rural/backward areas along with the steps taken/being taken by the Government to open  bank  branches  in  unserved  areas  including  the  time-frame  fixed  thereof,  State-wise  including Karnataka;
- (e)  the  number  of  villages  in  the  country  which  don't  have  any  banking  facility  in  the  radius  of  Five kilometres, State-wise including Karnataka; and
- (f) the steps taken by the Government to ensure banking facility in each village of the country?

## Answer

## THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF FINANCE (SHRI PANKAJ CHAUDHARY)

(a) to (f) Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has granted general permission to domestic Scheduled Commercial Banks (excluding Regional Rural Banks) to open banking outlets, including branches at any place in the country, without seeking prior approval of RBI in each case. This is subject to at least 25 percent of the total number of banking outlets to be opened in unbanked rural centres i.e. centres having population less than 10,000 (Tier 5 and Tier 6 centres) during a financial year.

Also,  in  pursuance  of  extant  RBI  guidelines,  rolling  out  of  banking  outlets  in  uncovered  areas  is  a continuous process looked after by the State Level Bankers' Committee (SLBC) / Union Territory Level Bankers Committee (UTLBC), in consultation with the concerned State Government, member Banks and other stakeholders. Banks, inter-alia, consider proposals for opening banking outlets in the light of RBI's instructions, their business plans and their commercial viability.

Further,  the  endeavour  of  the  Government  is  to  ensure  availability  of  banking  outlet  (Bank  Branch  / Business Correspondent / India Post Payments Bank) within 5 kms of all inhabited villages in the country. Availability  of  banking  outlets  is  monitored  by  a  Geographic  Information  System  (GIS)  based  App., namely, the Jan Dhan Darshak (JDD) App.

As per the JDD App, out of total 6,01,328 inhabited villages in the country, 6,00,750 (99.90%) villages are covered  with  banking  outlets  (Bank  Branch  /  BC  /  IPPB)  within  a  radius  of  5  kms.  Moreover,  as  on 31.01.2025, out of the total 27,524 inhabited villages in the state of Karnataka, 27,514 (99.96%) villages are covered with banking outlets within a radius of 5kms. Efforts are being undertaken to cover these remaining villages also by suitable banking outlets, status of which is reviewed at a periodical level.

The statewise number of villages not covered by banking outlets (Bank Branch / BC / IPPB) within a radius of 5 Km including the state of Karnataka is at Annexure.

| State wise number of villages not (Bank Branch or a BC or an IPPB   | State wise number of villages not (Bank Branch or a BC or an IPPB   | State wise number of villages not (Bank Branch or a BC or an IPPB   |
|---------------------------------------------------------------------|---------------------------------------------------------------------|---------------------------------------------------------------------|
| S.No.                                                               | States / UTs                                                        | No. of Unbanked Villages                                            |
| 1                                                                   | Andaman &Nicobar Islands                                            | 36                                                                  |
| 2                                                                   | Andhra Pradesh                                                      | 46                                                                  |
| 3                                                                   | Arunachal Pradesh                                                   | 123                                                                 |
| 4                                                                   | Assam                                                               | 23                                                                  |
| 5                                                                   | Bihar                                                               | 0                                                                   |
| 6                                                                   | Chandigarh                                                          | 0                                                                   |
| 7                                                                   | Chhattisgarh                                                        | 58                                                                  |
| 8                                                                   | Dadra and Nagar Haveli &Daman and Diu                               | 0                                                                   |
| 9                                                                   | Delhi                                                               | 0                                                                   |
| 10                                                                  | Goa                                                                 | 0                                                                   |
| 11                                                                  | Gujarat                                                             | 21                                                                  |
| 12                                                                  | Haryana                                                             | 0                                                                   |
| 13                                                                  | Himachal Pradesh                                                    | 7                                                                   |
| 14                                                                  | Jammu &Kashmir                                                      | 4                                                                   |
| 15                                                                  | Jharkhand                                                           | 0                                                                   |
| 16                                                                  | Karnataka                                                           | 10                                                                  |
| 17                                                                  | Kerala                                                              | 0                                                                   |
| 18                                                                  | Ladakh                                                              | 22                                                                  |
| 19                                                                  | Lakshadweep                                                         | 0                                                                   |
| 20                                                                  | Madhya Pradesh                                                      | 1                                                                   |
| 21                                                                  | Maharashtra                                                         | 34                                                                  |
| 22                                                                  | Manipur                                                             | 108                                                                 |
| 23                                                                  | Meghalaya                                                           | 5                                                                   |
| 24                                                                  | Mizoram                                                             | 9                                                                   |
| 25                                                                  | Nagaland                                                            | 16                                                                  |
| 26                                                                  | Odisha                                                              | 14                                                                  |
| 27                                                                  | Puducherry                                                          | 0                                                                   |
| 28                                                                  | Punjab                                                              | 0                                                                   |
| 29                                                                  | Rajasthan                                                           | 21                                                                  |
| 30                                                                  | Sikkim                                                              | 1                                                                   |
| 31                                                                  | Tamil Nadu                                                          | 1                                                                   |
| 32                                                                  | Telangana                                                           | 8                                                                   |
| 33                                                                  | Tripura                                                             | 1                                                                   |
| 34                                                                  | Uttar Pradesh                                                       | 2                                                                   |
| 35                                                                  | Uttarakhand                                                         | 7                                                                   |
| 36                                                                  | West Bengal                                                         | 0                                                                   |