|
Electronic
Fund Transfer (EFT):
India Post has recently embarked on an ambitious programme of
introducing Electronic Fund Transfers (EFT) in partnership with
reputed Banks. EFT implies the transfer of funds across
geographical locations, through electronic messaging systems. EFT
substitutes paper based process, increases the speed and
reliability of transfers, helps better information processing and
provides the customers with an increased certainty of payment date
while reducing per transaction costs for transfer of funds.
The Department’s existing dedicated countrywide V-SAT Network
provides it with ready capability to provide this service. It
allows the Department to combine its formidable physical reach
with thelatest in terms of technological banking. Recently India
Post has started a pilot project with UTI Bank for local
cheque clearance, high value fund transfers and warrant payments.
Collection
of Cheques Service:
This is the collection and clearance of cheques drawn or endorsed
in favour of partner bank followed by electronic transfer and
pooling of all such funds at one central location. It involves
presentation of cheques drawn or endorsed in favour of the partner
bank to designated Post offices at different stations, which are
members of the clearinghouse. The Post Office after getting the
individual cheques cleared transmits a remittance advice for the
consolidated cleared amount to the destination point (say, Mumbai
GPO). The destination post office prepares a cheque for the total
amount received from all such locations across the country and
hands this over to the authorized representative of the partner
Bank.
Presently, the post office is transferring such funds by Day Two
by 1100 hrs (where Day Zero is the day of receipt of the cheques).
Thereafter the cheque is put into high value clearance by the
partner Bank and their account is credited by evening of Day Two.
Salient
features of the scheme are as under:
1.
Acceptance of cheques by the designated Post office on behalf of
UTI Bank.
2.
Clearance of the cheque through the local clearing house.
3.
Communication of transfer of the amount realised on clearance of
cheques by the designated Post
Office through Satellite mail.
4.
Issue of an account payee cheque by the destination Post Office in
favour of UTI Bank for the
amount received on transfer.
High Value
Fund Transfer:
This involves transfer of funds between two branches of a client
bank. The remitting bank branch presents a cheque drawn in favour
of Department of Posts to the post office, this cheque is got
cleared and the remittance advise is transmitted electronically to
the destination post office. The destination post office
thereafter makes out a cheque to the borrowing bank branch for the
amount received from the originating point.
Presently these funds are being transmitted and a cheque handed
over to the partner Bank on Day One by 1100 hrs (where Day Zero is
the day of receipt of the cheques).
Warrant
Payment:
This
is a facility of payment of dividends and other such incomes
through the Post Office. Under this service the warrants are
printed jointly by India Post and the partner Bank and are payable
at par at specified post office locations. The total amount
required to accept all such joint warrants is paid by the partner
Bank in advance to the Nodal Post Office.
Simultaneously detailed information regarding the warrants to be
paid out at different payout locations is supplied to the Nodal
Post Office in soft and hard copy. This detailed information
regarding the warrants is transferred through the departmental
V-SAT system to the payout Post Offices for reference against
warrants presented through clearing to these post offices. The
payout post office also collects the physical warrants on a weekly
basis and posts them back to the Nodal Post Office for
reconciliation purposes.
Salient
features of the scheme are as under:
1.
Printing of warrants. Thereafter the partner Bank posts these
warrants to individual payees who in turn
present the warrants in clearance through their banks.
2.
Simultaneously, the Nodal Post Office accepts a cheque for the
consolidated amount and detailed
information (MIS) on the warrants from the partner Bank.
3.
Clearance of the cheque through the local clearing house.
4.
The cleared amount is placed in an institutional no interest
account opened in the name of the partner
bank at the Nodal Post Office. As and when warrants are accepted
and payments made at the payout
Post Offices, the amount in the account is correspondingly
reduced.
5.
Communication of the MIS and remittance advice by the Nodal Post
Office to the designated payout
Post Offices through Satellite mail.
6.
Confirmation by Post of the electronic MIS and remittance advice.
7.
When warrants are presented in clearing against the Post office,
the payout Post Office checks the
warrant against the MIS received and if found correct makes
payment through the clearinghouse.
8.
Accepted warrants are collected and posted back to the Nodal Post
Office for reconciliation purposes.
|
Electronic
Fund Transfer ( EFT )