Chhatrapur: The state government has roped in over 230 members of women self-help groups (SHGs) as bank representatives to deliver banking services to all rural households in every panchayat of Ganjam district. As per reports, a member of women SHG under Mission Shakti or an educated woman will be appointed as bank representative ‘Sakhi’ in every panchayat to deliver banking services to the rural folks. Meanwhile, process has been launched for appointing women as bank representatives. The move will help villagers access banking services near their house and the women members earn a livelihood and become self-reliant.
As part of this move, the appointed ‘Sakhis’ are being provided with training at the self-employment training centre of Union Bank of India at Chhatrapur. According to Saswat Kumar Sahoo, the district project coordinator of Mission Shakti here, over 230 members of women SHGs under the state government’s ambitious Mission Shakti programme are being appointed as bank representatives. Meanwhile, 74 members of women SHGs have already started working as ‘Sakhi’ while 26 more women joined training at the training centre recently.
Director Kishore Chandra Nayak of the training centre presided over the inaugural function and spoke in detail about the training programme and its objectives. Ganjam district lead district manager (LDM) Ashok Panda said that the banks can’t open branches in every place for which the women members of self-help groups are being appointed as ‘Sakhi’ bank representatives. They will serve as a link between banks and the villagers and provide banking services to the villagers in every panchayat. The appointed women will be provided with a room in their respective panchayats from where they will operate their office and transact business with the villagers. Mission Shakti DPCA Namita Pradhan and bank branch manager Nalini Ranjan Sahu were present in the function.