India Post to roll out its own ATMs beginning next month

India Post to roll out its own ATMs beginning next month,

IT & Communication Minister Kapil Sibal inaugurates National Data Centre in Navi Mumbai

India Post will out its own ATM services beginning next month. “The first of the ATMs would be rolled out simultaneously in New Delhi, Chennai and Bangalore on February 5” Kapil Sibal, Minister for Communications and IT, said, after inaugurating the Data Centre of the India Post, set up in Navi Mumbai. Unlike commercial banks machines, access to India Post ATMs will be limited to customers of Postal Savings Bank, whose number exceeds 26 crores. The Postal Department has drawn up an ambitious plan to roll out 3000 ATMs by 2015, in a phased manner. The Department would also rollout 1.35 lakh micro ATMs, thereby empowering its rural post offices across the country.

Mr Kapil Sibal strongly favoured a banking licence for India Post by stating that "the only department that can do financial inclusion is the Postal Department. India Post can leverage its reach of over 1.55 lakh post offices across the country, out of which 1.40 lakh are in rural and far-flung areas.”

India Post’s National Data Centre, spread over 3,000 sq ft and located at the Dhirubhai Ambani Knowledge City, will act as the nerve centre of all postal services, including savings, insurance and speed posts tracking. The Data Centre can house 80 racks and has a capacity of 250 terabytes. It also has a 250 TB disaster recovery centre in Mysore. It has been jointly set up by the Department of Post in collaboration with Reliance Communications, Navi Mumbai. “This is the milestone in the modernisation programme of the postal department, with services such as insurance, savings bank, speed post and money order all being computerised,” Mr. Sibal added. The Navi Mumbai Data Centre will help India Post extend core-banking like facilities to its Savings Account holders.