Subhash Chandra Agrawal
Too many interest rates and variety of deposit-schemes should be made uniform and streamlined for all public-sector banks and post-offices. Fixed Deposits should be in multiples of Rs 10,000 with interest rates six-per cent for one year and seven-per cent for three years to be paid only on maturity. Any pre-matured payment may attract penalty of one-per cent on interest-rate prevailing at time of pre-payment. Those requiring flexibility can then keep their deposits in savings-accounts with a higher interest-rate of five per cent to be credited on last day of February every year. Also all branches of public-sector banks may accept deposits in 7.75-per cent RBI bonds so that investors may find single-window facilities for different types of deposits.
Senior citizens presently are entitled for eight per cent annual interest on five-year deposits up to Rs 15 lakh under Senior Citizen Savings Scheme in post-offices, and additional Rs 15 lakh for ten years under Pradhan Mantri Vaya Vandana Yojna launched by public-sector Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) of India. Such multiplicity of schemes should be replaced by a single deposit-scheme for senior citizens with combined capping of Rs 30 lakh with eight-per cent annual interest-rate to be available in all branches of public-sector banks and post-offices. Persons presently having deposits in Senior Citizen Savings Scheme and Pradhan Mantri Vaya Vandana Yojna may make deposits in new consolidated scheme only after deducting amounts already deposited in these two earlier schemes of post-office and LIC of India. Likewise other exclusive savings-schemes for special categories available in post-offices should be available in all branches of public-sector banks.
Websites of postal-department and public-sector banks should have provision of downloading of completely filled forms of various requirements including deposits from respective websites. These forms should be simplified and uniform for all public-sector banks. Presently different banks have different types of forms for same purpose with some banks have useless complications like requiring never-to-be verified witnesses for opening Public Provident Fund (PPF) accounts even though the person may already have account in the same bank. System will be beneficial for bank-staff and bank-customer because of ease of filling form and reading the computer-printed form.
