Lok Sabha Question No. 508 (STARRED), answered on 2026-03-30
Subject: Safety of Bank Locker Facilities
Ministry: FINANCE
Asked by: Dr. Kirsan Namdeo

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF FINANCE

## DEPARTMENT OF FINANCIAL SERVICES

## LOK SABHA

## STARRED QUESTION NO. *508

ANSWERED ON MONDAY, MARCH 30, 2026/CHAITRA 09, 1948 (SAKA)

## Safety of Bank Locker Facilities

*508. DR. KIRSAN NAMDEO:

Will the Minister of FINANCE be pleased to state:

(a) the total number of bank locker facilities operated by public sector banks, private sector banks and cooperative banks as on date;

(b) the number of reported cases of locker theft, year-wise, State-wise and bank-wise;

(c)  whether  any  review  has  been  conducted  by  the  Government  on  compliance  with  the Reserve Bank of India's 2021 directions on safe deposit locker facilities, if so, the number of banks found non-compliant; and

(d) whether the Government proposes to revise norms on liability limits, insurance coverage or mandatory disclosure of locker security standards in cases of a bank's fault and if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

THE MINISTER OF FINANCE (SMT. NIRMALA SITHARAMAN)

(a) to (d): A statement is laid on the Table of the House.

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## STATEMENT FOR LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO. *508 FOR MARCH 30, 2026, REGARDING  'SAFETY  OF  BANK  LOCKER  FACILITIES'  BY  DR.  KIRSAN  NAMDEO, HON'BLE MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT

(a) to (d): As per inputs received from Public Sector Banks (PSBs), a total of 1,09,98,050 bank lockers  were  operational  as  on  31.03.2025.  Further,  40  cases  of  locker  theft  have  been established in PSBs during FY 2020-21 to FY 2024-25. The year-wise, PSB-wise and Statewise details are enclosed at Annexure I and Annexure II, respectively. As per information from received from NABARD, a total of 11,22,982 locker facilities are currently operated by Rural Cooperative Banks. Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has informed that it does not maintain details of locker facilities operated in banks and nor the cases of locker theft.

RBI has issued 'Deposit Locker/Safe Custody Article Facility provided by the banks- Revised Instructions',  on  18.8.2021  and  the  banks  have  been  advised  to  frame  their  own  Board approved policy/ operational guidelines, considering the same. Some of the key instructions of the said circular include, inter alia, the following

- i. Adoption of a Model Locker Agreement; Prescribed enhanced safety and security standards for lockers;
- ii. Ensuring that locker areas remain adequately guarded at all times;
- iii. Provision of SMS/email alerts for locker operations;
- iv. Standardised procedures for breaking open lockers under specified circumstances; and
- v. A defined liability and compensation framework, along with mandatory disclosure of policies and procedures on bank websites.

Compliance  to  RBI  guidelines  issued  to  banks  is  examined  on  sample  basis  during  the Supervisory Assessment of the banks and any non-compliance observed are taken up with the banks for rectification apart from initiating supervisory/ enforcement action against the bank, as deemed fit.

Further, banks are required to ensure that locker premises are adequately secured against criminal break-ins as well as natural and man-made hazards, in accordance with prescribed standards. As informed by PSBs, locker units are housed in strong rooms or safes conforming to Bureau of Indian Standards specifications. Branches are equipped with CCTV surveillance, burglar alarm systems, fire alarm systems and appropriate physical security arrangements, which are subject to periodic audit.

Banks have also been advised to put in place Board-approved insurance policies to mitigate losses arising from contingencies affecting locker contents.

As per the extant guidelines, banks are liable for loss of locker contents arising from incidents such as fire, theft, burglary, dacoity, robbery, building collapse or employee fraud, where such loss is attributable to the bank's negligence or deficiency. In such cases, the liability of banks is capped at an amount equivalent to one hundred times the prevailing annual locker rent.

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Annexure I

PSB-wise, Year-wise established cases of locker theft during FY 2020-21 to FY 2024-25

| Sl. No.   | Public Sector Banks   |   FY 2020- 21 |   FY 2021-22 |   FY 2022- 23 |   FY 2023- 24 |   FY 2024- 25 |
|-----------|-----------------------|---------------|--------------|---------------|---------------|---------------|
| (i)       | Bank of Baroda        |             0 |            0 |             0 |             0 |             0 |
| (ii)      | Bank of India         |             0 |            1 |            10 |             3 |             0 |
| (iii)     | Bank of Maharashtra   |             0 |            0 |             0 |             0 |             0 |
| (iv)      | Canara Bank           |             0 |            0 |             0 |             0 |             0 |
| (v)       | Central Bank of India |             0 |           13 |             1 |             0 |             0 |
| (vi)      | Indian Bank           |             0 |            1 |             0 |             0 |             0 |
| (vii)     | Indian Overseas Bank  |             0 |            1 |             0 |             0 |             0 |
| (viii)    | Punjab & Sind Bank    |             0 |            0 |             0 |             0 |             0 |
| (ix)      | Punjab National Bank  |             0 |            0 |             0 |             0 |             0 |
| (x)       | State Bank of India   |             0 |            0 |             6 |             0 |             4 |
| (xi)      | UCO Bank              |             0 |            0 |             0 |             0 |             0 |
| (xii)     | Union Bank of India   |             0 |            0 |             0 |             0 |             0 |
| Total     | Total                 |             0 |           16 |            17 |             3 |             4 |

#Source: Public Sector Banks

## State-wise established cases of locker theft during FY 2020-21 to FY 2024-25:

| Sr. No.   | State/UT                     |   No. of established cases |
|-----------|------------------------------|----------------------------|
| 1         | Andhra Pradesh               |                          1 |
| 2         | Arunachal Pradesh            |                          0 |
| 3         | Assam                        |                          0 |
| 4         | Bihar                        |                          1 |
| 5         | Chhattisgarh                 |                          1 |
| 6         | Goa                          |                          0 |
| 7         | Gujarat                      |                          1 |
| 8         | Haryana                      |                          1 |
| 9         | Himachal Pradesh             |                          0 |
| 10        | Jharkhand                    |                         12 |
| 11        | Karnataka                    |                          0 |
| 12        | Kerala                       |                          0 |
| 13        | Madhya Pradesh               |                          0 |
| 14        | Maharashtra                  |                          5 |
| 15        | Manipur                      |                          0 |
| 16        | Meghalaya                    |                          0 |
| 17        | Mizoram                      |                          0 |
| 18        | Nagaland                     |                          0 |
| 19        | Odisha                       |                          0 |
| 20        | Punjab                       |                          0 |
| 21        | Rajasthan                    |                          0 |
| 22        | Sikkim                       |                          0 |
| 23        | Tamil Nadu                   |                          0 |
| 24        | Telangana                    |                          0 |
| 25        | Tripura                      |                          0 |
| 26        | Uttar Pradesh                |                         18 |
| 27        | Uttarakhand                  |                          0 |
| 28        | West Bengal                  |                          0 |
| 29        | Andaman and Nicobar Islands  |                          0 |
| 30        | Chandigarh                   |                          0 |
| 31        | D&N Haveli and Daman and Diu |                          0 |
| 32        | Delhi                        |                          0 |
| 33        | Jammu & Kashmir              |                          0 |
| 34        | Ladakh                       |                          0 |
| 35        | Lakshadweep                  |                          0 |
| 36        | Puducherry                   |                          0 |
| Total     | Total                        |                         40 |

#Source: Public Sector Banks