In a bid to make more hassle-free payment to workers under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA) in the State, the ICICI Bank and the State Panchayati Raj Department have signed an agreement to start mobile-based disbursement of wages to the workers.
The bank, for the purpose, has tied up with the Mobile Commerce Solutions limited (MCSl), a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Vodafone India. The project will be implemented on pilot basis at two blocks, Hinjilicut and Chikiti in Ganjam district.
Bank executive director Rajiv Sabharwal said that the pilot would not only help the State Governments in handling the MNREGA payments but also go a long way in providing easy and reliable banking services to the people.
Under the pact, Vodafone SIM cards will be issued to the MNREGA job holders and the bank will open accounts for the beneficiaries after required KYC checks. The mobile number will act as the savings account number, which will allow the beneficiaries to directly receive their wages on their mobile.
The customers will also receive SMS alerts and be able to easily withdraw cash from any nearby designated retail outlet by simply authorizing the transactions on their mobile.
The customers can also earn savings bank interest for the funds remaining in their accounts and carry out deposits and remittances directly through mobiles. The companies will appoint a mobile retailer in each Gram Panchayat to act as customer service providers in the pilot project areas.