KVG Bank employees to adopt villages

A villager feels comfortable when somebody is there to help him in getting his work done at government offices in nearby towns.  Or a proactive villager may want to organise a health camp for the fellow villagers, but may not know how to go about it.  

It is these insights that the staff of Karnataka Vikas Grameena Bank (KVGB) hope to offer the villagers through ‘Gram Sahayog’ (village assistance) programme.

A regional rural bank with presence in nine districts of Karnataka, KVGB is planning a concept of staff members adopting villages under its jurisdiction for the overall development of villages.

Ashok Reddy, Chairman of KVGB, told Business Line here that the bank serves 2518 villages in districts such as Dharwad, Gadag, Haveri, Bagalkot, Belgaum, Bijapur, Uttara Kannada, Udupi and Dakshina Kannada. It has around 2600 staff members, and each one of them will adopt a village for its overall development.

The staff member concerned will have to conduct at least two meetings a month with the villagers on the development activities for the village. Village panchayats, schools, apolitical organisations, and individuals in their own capacities can help the staff members in carrying out various activities in the villages, he said.

Many villages under the bank’s jurisdiction are affected by fluorosis, and health camps are a necessity in such regions. Training in modern agricultural practices and organic farming will also be given thrust under the scheme. Sanitation is another area where the bank has decided to focus its attention for this project.

The staff members will give priority for taking up financial literacy activities in villages and be the brand ambassador for the bank’s products and schemes in the villages allotted to them. Each staff member will submit a quarterly report on the performance of their work in the villages to the member’s regional offices.

Asked if the bank was influenced by the Adarsh Gram Yojana of the Prime Minister where each Member of Parliament will adopt a village for its overall development, Reddy said the scheme was formulated before the announcement. It is just a coincidence that it is being launched along with that, he said.

Reddy said he had adopted a village near Dharwad and is hopeful of bringing some change in village development .

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