Sify Technologies said it is powering the India Post Payments Bank project as the network integrator and network service provider.
Sify built and connected endpoints as part of the INR 1877 crore or $270 million DoP modernization/IT automation drive. This resulted in Sify building the largest integrated MPLS (Multiprotocol Label Switching) network in India for the postal services.
The total scale of the project in Phase 1 involved connecting 28,000+ urban and semi urban post offices, Sify said.
IPPB will go now live with 650 branches, 3250 access points co-located at post offices and around 11,000 gramin dak sevaks. IPPB is starting operations with 17 crore accounts and gradually 1.55 lakh access points will be enabled to offer banking services.
India Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the India Post Payments Bank at Talkatora Stadium in New Delhi on September 1, 2018.
India Post Payments Bank will leverage the network of the Department of Posts, which covers every corner of the country with more than 300,000 Postmen and Grameen Dak Sewaks.
The Union Cabinet has given its approval for revising the project cost for setting up of India Post Payments Bank from Rs 800 crore to Rs 1,435 crore.
The additional cost of Rs 635 crore is on account of Rs 400 crore for technology cost and Rs 235 crore for human resource costs. India Post Payments Bank has set up a robust IT architecture to meet advanced technology needs.
India Post Payments Bank will be available at 650 IPPB branches and 3,250 access points from 1 September 2018 and in all 1.55 lakh post offices by December 2018.
The project will generate new employment opportunity for about 3500 banking professionals and other entities.
All citizens, especially 40 percent of the country’s population that is outside the ambit of formal banking in the country will benefit from this project. India Post Payments Bank is a Public Limited Company under the Department of Posts, with 100 percent Government of India (GOI) equity.
India Government has said that there are many companies who have approached the Department of Posts for collaboration with India Post Payments Bank. Minister of Communications Manoj Sinha said India Post Payments Bank launched its two branches at Raipur in Chhattisgarh and Ranchi in Jharkhand on 30-01-2017 with basic products and banking services in partnership with Punjab National Bank.
India Post Payments Bank will offer products such as savings and current accounts, money transfer, direct benefit transfers, bill and utility payments, and enterprise and merchant payments. These products, and related services, will be offered across multiple channels such as counter services, micro-ATM, mobile banking app, SMS and IVR.
