Lok Sabha Question No. 5019 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2026-03-23
Subject: Branches of Nationalised Banks
Ministry: FINANCE
Asked by: Dr. Shivaji Bandappa Kalge, Shri Nilesh Dnyandev Lanke

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF FINANCE

## DEPARTMENT OF FINANCIAL SERVICES

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 5019

ANSWERED ON MONDAY, MARCH 23, 2026/CHAITRA 02, 1948 (SAKA)

## Branches of Nationalised Banks

## † 5019. SHRI NILESH DNYANDEV LANKE: DR. SHIVAJI BANDAPPA KALGE:

Will the Minister of FINANCE be pleased to state:

- (a) the number of villages in different States of the country which do not have even a single branch of any nationalised bank;
- (b) the total population of people who do not have bank accounts in the country during the last five years till date, year-wise and State-wise, including Maharashtra;
- (c) whether the Government has reviewed the effectiveness of existing financial inclusion initiatives in reducing the number of families deprived of banking facilities;
- (d) if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor; and
- (e) the  steps  taken  by  the  Government  to  ensure  equitable  banking  access  including  strengthening digital  and  physical  banking  infrastructure  in  remote  and  underserved  areas  in  the  State  of Maharashtra?

## ANSWER

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

(a) to (e) The endeavour of the Government is to ensure availability of banking outlet (Bank branch / Business  Correspondent  (BC)  /  India  Post  Payments  Bank  (IPPB))  within  05  kilometres  (km)  of  all inhabited villages in the country. Availability of banking outlets is monitored by a Geographic Information System (GIS) based Application, namely, Jan Dhan Darshak (JDD) App.

Based on the data uploaded by Banks on the JDD App., 99.92% villages in the country are covered with banking outlets (Bank Branch / BC / IPPB) within a radius of 05 km, as on 06.03.2026. Data regarding the total population currently without a bank account is not centrally maintained.

Further, as per the 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 commercial viability. To further assess the viability for opening a banking outlet, banks carry out survey as required.

Banks conduct regular awareness camps at the grassroots level to promote the financial inclusion schemes of  Government  of  India.  Additionally,  a  review  mechanism  is  in  place  to  regularly  monitor  the implementation and effectiveness of these schemes with banks and other relevant stakeholders.

The Government launched the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) in August, 2014 to provide universal banking services for every unbanked household. Further, to give impetus to financial inclusion initiatives of the Government, the scheme was extended beyond 14.08.2018 by shifting the focus from 'every household' to 'every unbanked adult'.

Several initiatives are being undertaken by the Government to ensure that all sections of the society have equitable  access  to  the  financial  inclusion  schemes  in  the  country  based  on  the  guiding  principles  of banking  the  unbanked,  securing  the  unsecured,  funding  the  unfunded  and  serving  unserved  and underserved areas.

Recently, a Gram Panchayat level saturation campaign was launched from 01.07.2025 to 31.10.2025 across the country with the objective to enhance the penetration of Financial Inclusion Flagship Schemes i.e. Pradhan  Mantri  Jan  Dhan  Yojana  (PMJDY),  Pradhan  Mantri  Jeevan  Jyoti  Bima  Yojana  (PMJJBY), Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana (PMSBY) and Atal Pension Yojana (APY).

The availability of physical and digital banking infrastructure in the State of Maharashtra is as under:

| Banking infrastructure in Maharashtra (as on 28.02.2026)   | Banking infrastructure in Maharashtra (as on 28.02.2026)   | Banking infrastructure in Maharashtra (as on 28.02.2026)   | Banking infrastructure in Maharashtra (as on 28.02.2026)   |
|------------------------------------------------------------|------------------------------------------------------------|------------------------------------------------------------|------------------------------------------------------------|
| Branch                                                     | BC                                                         | ATM                                                        | IPPB                                                       |
| 18,331                                                     | 1,51,421                                                   | 21,834                                                     | 13,761                                                     |
| Source: JDD App                                            | Source: JDD App                                            | Source: JDD App                                            | Source: JDD App                                            |

| List of Digital Banking Units (DBUs) Setup in Maharashtra (as on Feb' 2026)   | List of Digital Banking Units (DBUs) Setup in Maharashtra (as on Feb' 2026)   | List of Digital Banking Units (DBUs) Setup in Maharashtra (as on Feb' 2026)   | List of Digital Banking Units (DBUs) Setup in Maharashtra (as on Feb' 2026)   |
|-------------------------------------------------------------------------------|-------------------------------------------------------------------------------|-------------------------------------------------------------------------------|-------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| S.No                                                                          | Name of District                                                              | STATE/ UT                                                                     | Bank                                                                          |
| 1                                                                             | Aurangabad                                                                    | Maharashtra                                                                   | Bank of Maharashtra                                                           |
| 2                                                                             | Satara                                                                        | Maharashtra                                                                   | Bank of Maharashtra                                                           |
| 3                                                                             | Lokmangal                                                                     | Maharashtra                                                                   | Bank of Maharashtra                                                           |
| 4                                                                             | Thane                                                                         | Maharashtra                                                                   | HDFC Bank                                                                     |
| 5                                                                             | Pune                                                                          | Maharashtra                                                                   | HDFC Bank                                                                     |
| 6                                                                             | Nagpur                                                                        | Maharashtra                                                                   | Union Bank of India                                                           |

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