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Post offices in Western region have pledged to work an extra hour till March 31 and on the remaining Sunday this month (March 29) to achieve the current year’s target of 1.5 lakh accounts under the SSA (Sukanya Samriddhi Savings Account) for welfare of the girl child.
Manju P Pillai, Post Master General, Western Region, Tamil Nadu Circle said that while the response is good (for the scheme implemented in January this year as part of “Beti Bachao Beti Padhao” programme of Prime Minister Narendra Modi), “the footfalls have not translated into accounts.”
The PMG is hoping that by keeping the offices open on Sundays, parents and guardians, who were otherwise not able to visit the post office for opening the SSA account for their girl children would be able to do so. “This arrangement is only to facilitate opening of SSA,” she said.
The region is now sensitising people about SSA savings account, organising melas and campaigns division-wise, approaching playschools, creche and government schools, circulating leaflets to ensure the success of the scheme.
It (Region) has in the last two months (since its launch in January) opened 29,302 SSA accounts with deposits totalling Rs 4.82 crore. Of this, Coimbatore district alone accounts for 7,333 accounts and deposit of Rs 1.24 crore, she said, adding “the district's target is 13,700 accounts.”
She further observed that the response for the scheme was better in semi urban and rural areas compared to Coimbatore city, “but unfortunately, those in rural pockets are unable to make the initial deposit of Rs 1,000 to open the account under SSA. We are therefore trying to get sponsors,” the PMG said
Savings bank account
Reverting to savings bank account, she said “we are adding close to 20,000 accounts every day. The district's revenue growth is 26 per cent compared to last year.”
To yet another query, she said “about 67 lakh savings account are live (in this region), and less than 5 lakh accounts have turned dormant. The amount lying unclaimed in the silent account is close to Rs 16 crore. We are in the process of identifying the beneficiaries. Around 30 per cent of the dormant accounts were opened before 1970.”
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