From financial to social inclusion: The changing face of Indian banks

Over the years banking sector has undergone tremendous changes. From a simple money lending institution banks have now emerged as actors of social change. The role of banks has become multifaceted after nationalisation of major commercial banks. It essentially reflects persisting efforts by banks to dispel the general perception of being just a lender for poor and treasury for rich. From class banking to mass banking banks have come a long way and this trend is going to continue as for now. Customer oriented service, hassle free transactions and a wide range of products and services to cater to the needs of everyone has made banks very sought after. Apart from it facility of ATMs and credit/debit cards and payment of online bills like telephone, electricity and tax are adding to the diversifying role of the banking industry with the recent one being linking of Aadhar card to bank account to get LPG subsidy. All these indicate the evolving face of banking sector keeping up pace with capricious macroeconomic credit flow to tailored customer demand. The new generation banks have now established themselves by setting up high standards of services and efficiency. While they are catering to the need of high end investors by making available huge amounts of capital for big projects in the industrial, infrastructure and service sectors. At the same time banks have stressed on their role in rural areas by giving cheap credit to farmers in rural areas for their short and medium term needs.