Poll promise sparks rush of women at GPO to open savings accounts

Given women’s experience in Karnataka, free bus travel and other freebies already delivered by the Congress government, they believe it was just a matter of time before they start receiving the money in monthly instalments from the government

By Lakshmana Venkat Kuchi/Consulting Editor
From Bengaluru

Women in Bangalore are queuing up at the Indian Post Payments Bank outside the General Post Office in the city, believing they will get Rs 8,500 per month if there is a change in government at the Centre with Congress leading it.

In the last week alone, reports from different regions indicate that hundreds of women are opening their accounts driven by the rumours of money deposits, promised by the Congress during elections, that each woman from the eligible groups would be paid Rs 8,500 monthly.

Given women’s experience in Karnataka, free bus travel and other freebies already delivered by the Congress government, they feel it was just a matter of time before they start receiving the money in monthly instalments from the government.

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And of course, they are praying for the same. More women voted than their male counterparts in Karnataka in the parliamentary elections, and the Congress party is interpreting this as proof of the success of their ‘Shakti’ scheme. Congress mandarins believe that women were thanking them by voting for them in Lok Sabha elections too, especially given the five guarantees of the Congress and those for women.

According to reports from Bengaluru city, lady constables and post office security staff had to regulate the women crowding the premises from 6 a.m. Women have been seen standing in queues given the less seating space available. All to open an account with the India Post Payments Bank, which facilitates online transactions that are similar to the ones facilitated by normal commercial banks.

Those queueing up to open bank accounts say they had heard “they would get money transferred into their accounts. Word of mouth information, social media buzz, and WhatsApp forwards speak about government freebies – a central government subsidy on the lines of the State’s ‘Gruhalakshmi’ scheme of Rs 6,000 to be given by BJP if it is voted to power, and Rs 8,500 to be given if the Congress is voted to power.

Already, in Karnataka, women have been enjoying free bus travel across the state under the Congress government’s Shakti scheme, which, incidentally, has also led to higher GST collections by the state government due to the businesses generated by women’s travel in which their families and male members also accompanied, leading to increased spending on the whole.

The main post office in Bengaluru became the hub of action, and postman Annappa Swamy and other colleagues were working from dawn to dusk to handle the additional rush of women who came to open their accounts.

“The Aadhaar card, mobile number, mother’s name, and biometrics are what we gather from each person and the account is opened immediately,” the postman said.

A woman standing in the queue told media persons, “We learned through social media that women will get Rs 8,500 monthly if Congress comes to power. So, we want to keep an account ready for it.”

Assistant general manager, circle head, Karnataka said that more than 3,000 accounts were opened in the last month.