Massive Response for Modi's Sukanya Samriddhi Account

By Express News Service

Published: 01st April 2015

 

CHENNAI: Three months after the Union Government rolled out the Sukanya Samridhi Account for girl children, Tamil Nadu, Chennai postal region and Tambaram division have emerged among the top performers in adding accounts under the new scheme.

 

A whopping 40 per cent of new accounts opened under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Sukanya Samridhi Account were from Tamil Nadu, said Post Master General of Chennai City Region Merwin Alexander, adding that the State is ranked top among all other States.

 

Alexander told Express that the State has opened 6.10 lakh accounts in the last two months, substantially higher than the other States. The scheme has caught the interest of every region across the State, with Chennai City Region that comprises seven northern districts and Union Territory of Puducherry accounting for 2.23 lakh new accounts.

 

Alexander added that Tambaram postal division alone had opened 52,000 accounts, the highest by any postal division in the country.

 

Senior Superintendent of Post, Tambaram division, Leela Krishnan, attributed the success to the campaign by the field staff. “We have 95 sub post offices and three head post offices besides 148 branch offices. Our field staff went around temples, marriage halls and distributed pamphlets and circulars to the people," said Leela Kishnan.

 

Assistant superintendent of Posts, Babu, said that camps were organised at six to eight places besides help was sought from ward members and councillors.

 

Maharajan, a temple priest in Anna Nagar said that he came to know about the scheme through campaigning being done by the postal department. "The scheme is very attractive. Nobody gives you 9.10 per cent interest (now 9.20 pc) on savings of Rs 1,000 to Rs 1 lakh. I have a seven-year-old daughter and I think this will secure her future," he said while hailing the scheme.

 

Raghunath, a resident of Avadi, said that he knew about the scheme through his relative. "The scheme has such wonderful returns. No other scheme gives you such returns," he said.

 

"Usually such schemes don't reach people. However, due to the reach of postal department, even a small rural post office was able to open 200 acounts," Alexander noted.

 

This has boosted the coffers of the Postal department in the most remote location. Currently, the postal department is giving 9.20 per cent interest on the deposits, said Alexander.

 

Launched in January, the Sukanya Samriddhi Scheme is a small savings scheme aimed at encouraging savings for a girl child's education and marriage.

 

Account under Sukanya Samriddhi can be opened and operated either by the minor girl child below 10 years or by guardian of the girl child. Only one account shall be opened in the name of a girl child under these rules after furnishing birth certificate of the girl child along with other documents relating to identity and residence proof of the depositor.

 

Total no of SSA accounts opened in the FY 2014-15 - Tamil Nadu - 6,11,835 - Chennai City Region -- 2,23,340 - Central Region (Trichy) --- 1,72,054 - Southern Region (Madurai) --- 1,22,540 - Western Region (Coimbatore) -- 93,901