Jammu, June 25 (IANS) Bal Jarallan, a quaint and isolated village in J&K’s Rajouri district, suffered for a long time from a lack of banking services, but the situation has improved drastically in the past few years. And, leading this shift is the Central government’s National Rural Livelihood Mission (NRLM) scheme.

The Business Correspondent (BC) Unit, established at Bal Jarallan village under NRLM, the flagship scheme of the Centre, in collaboration with Jammu and Kashmir Bank, has brought a transformation to banking services in rural areas. The initiative not only simplified banking services for villagers but also reduced their hardships of traveling long distances.

The BC Unit is providing doorstep services such as account opening, cash deposits and withdrawals, social security benefits, government scheme transactions, and various digital banking services.

Elderly persons, poor families, students, Self Help Group (SHG) members, and other local residents have emerged as major beneficiaries of the scheme. A couple of locals speaking to IANS shared the transformational change in their lives.

Mohammad Niyaz said, “Banking facility was not available here earlier. We had to travel long distances, but this center has provided us with much-needed relief. We get assistance even during weekends, even if we need.”

A woman beneficiary, Nazim Akhtar, said that locals had difficulty accessing banking services earlier, but now the entire gamut of services is available here.

“Even for FDs, we had to visit urban centers earlier. But today, banking accounts, FDs, pension and insurance services – every facility is available here,” she added.

Besides strengthening financial inclusion, the unit has also created a sustainable livelihood opportunity for the SHG members operating it.

Kamran Hani, program manager, said that the Business Correspondent Unit, established in Jammu and Kashmir, under the NRLM, caters to the local population, left out of banking services.

“We also help people, avail government welfare services and social security services at their doorstep. This also provided employment building opportunities to the local population,” he said.

The BC Unit at Bal Jarallan is fast emerging as a successful example of Digital India and financial inclusion.

Notably, the NRLM is a flagship poverty alleviation program aimed at mobilizing rural poor households into Self Help Groups (SHGs) and nurturing them to engage in economic activities until they attain an appreciable increase in income, thereby emerging from abject poverty.

–IANS

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