India Post Payments Bank to start operations soon
NEW DELHI: India Post Payments Bank is expected to go live with 650 branches and around 17 crore accounts in August, following clearance from Reserve Bank of India to start operations.
"We are looking at launch date. From an operational, technology and market perspective, we are ready to go live," India Post Payments Bank (IPPB) MD and CEO Suresh Sethi said.
He confirmed that RBI has given approval to IPPB after testing its entire system. The final approval for the launch of IPPB was pending before the RBI. According to sources in the communications ministry the launch of IPPB is expected in August. When asked about the launch schedule, Sethi without specifying the timings said: "It is very much around the corner".
IPPB was the third entity to receive payments bank permit after Airtel and Paytm. Payments banks can accept deposits up to Rs 1 lakh per account from individuals and small businesses.
The new model of banking allows mobile firms, super market chains and others to cater to banking requirements of individuals and small businesses. It will be set up as a differen- tiated bank and will confine its activities to acceptance of demand deposits, remittance services, Internet banking and other specified services.
"We have already started testing within closed user group and it is very much running on national basis. As we speak we are already doing it at around 250 branches," Sethi said.
IPPB will go live with 650 branches in addition to 3,250 access points co-located at post offices and around 11,000 gramin dak sevaks (in rural area) and postmen (in urban area) that will provide doorstep banking services.
"With this, we will provide banking services across 1,700 counters and 11,000 doorstep service. IPPB has permis- sion to link around 17 crore postal savings bank (PSB) account with its account. We have received approval for carrying out RTGS, NEFT, IMPS transaction that will enable IPPB customers to transfer and receive money from any bank account. It will facilitate almost full fledge banking," the bank's CEO said.
The payments bank will gradually link all 1.55 lakh post offices in the country to offer the service.
Customers can access their IPPB account through mobile app but it will have limited services.
"Once a customer completes KYC (know your customers) requirement, the app will start offering all the banking service," he added.
IPPB will also launch a mobile app to facilitate online banking service as well as payment for various utilities and services like phone bill, DTH, gas connection, electricity etc.
"There will be 100 plus billers for which IPPB customers will be able to pay from their account. Since IPPB account can hold up to Rs 1 lakh deposit so once PSB account will be linked to them, customers will be able to transfer money from PSB to IPPB and vice-versa. Money beyond Rs 1 lakh can be kept in PSB," Sethi said. All the billers that accept payment through Bharat Bill Payments system will be available for IPPB customers from Day 1 of the launch, he added. IPPB was incorporated on August 17, 2016 under Companies Act, 2013 as a public limited company with 100 per cent Government of India equity under Department of Posts. NEW DELHI: The CBDT has directed the Income Tax Department to ensure filing all its petitions before the NCLT by next month to recover due taxes worth crores of rupees from a number of de-registered shell or dummy companies.
The policy-making body of the tax department has issued the directive as part of the action plan unveiled recently.
"A large number of companies have been struck off from the records of the ROC (registrar of companies) during last year. In several cases of such companies, petitions for restoration of registration are required to be filed before the NCLT so as to be able to pursue recovery of demands raised in their cases.
"Assessing officers must identify all such cases at the earliest and ensure filing of petitions by August 31, 2018," the action plan said.
The government, last year, had struck off over 2.26 lakh firms for engaging in illegal activities and as part of Modi government's drive against black money.
Similar action against about 2.25 lakh more such firms, also called shell or dummy companies, is expected in the coming days.
The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), in May, had directed the tax department to form a special team of officers to complete the task of filing these petitions in various NCLT (national company law tribunal) benches across the country.
The CBDT took action as it was concerned over crores of rupees of its "legitimate" taxes being stuck.
PTI had reported that a letter was written by the CBDT to all its regional chiefs stating that the tax department is an "aggrieved creditor" vis-avis these struck off shell companies and the taxman should hence undertake all efforts to file these petitions to get its dues from them.
The CBDT believes that the appeals for "restoration" of these firms are required to recover tax dues and "protect the legitimate interests of revenue".
A standard operating procedure (SOP) was issued by the CBDT last year for the tax department for filing such appeals and it stated that shell firms against whom the department has pending cases of departmental appeal, penalty and prosecution among others, will be petitioned before the NCLT.
The CBDT had said it has also requested the Corporate Affairs ministry to intimate the regional Rocs to ensure issue of "public notice" of striking off or de-registration of companies to the designated nodal officers of the tax department in the country.
The Board directed the taxman to swiftly respond with a "statement of objection" and status of pending tax arrears on a case-to-case basis against those firms whom the tax department thinks is required to be 'held on' for realisation of taxes.
The CBDT also asked the taxman to harness the data available against such firms in the public domain. It has also asked the ministry to help in identifying companies already struck-off or de-registered by furnishing to it a list of all such cases during the 2017-18 financial year.