report of the working group on improvement of banking services

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Approach <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Working Group
1.4 The Working Group visited <strong>the</strong> islands and adopted a field visit approach to have a feel <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> unique
nature <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> islands. The field visits were coupled with wider consultations with Government functionaries and
bank <strong>of</strong>ficials in <strong>the</strong> islands. These consultations were fur<strong>the</strong>r supplemented by interactions with <strong>the</strong> local
populace, Self-Help Groups and o<strong>the</strong>rs to get a feel <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> ground realities prevailing in <strong>the</strong> islands. The
Working Group held three meetings - two meetings at Kochi and one meeting at Kavaratti, <strong>the</strong> capital <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong>
UTL. The first meeting held at Kochi discussed broad aspects relating to <strong>the</strong> approach to be adopted by <strong>the</strong>
Group in view <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> special nature <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> islands. The second meeting, held in Lakshadweep at Kavaratti,
focussed primarily on indepth discussions with <strong>the</strong> heads <strong>of</strong> various line Government departments. In <strong>the</strong> third
meeting <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Group at Kochi, <strong>the</strong> observations from <strong>the</strong> visit to <strong>the</strong> islands were discussed at length to
structure <strong>the</strong> <strong>report</strong> suitably from a developmental perspective. The Group also invited experts from Marine
Products Exports Development Authority (MPEDA), Kochi, Coconut Development Board & Coir Board from
Kochi to make presentations on <strong>the</strong> developmental potential with special emphasis on value addition <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong>
fisheries and coconut & coir sectors in <strong>the</strong> UTL.
Structure <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Report
1.5 The <strong>report</strong> has been structured as follows :
After this introductory chapter, a broad pr<strong>of</strong>ile <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Union Territory is given in Chapter 2. Chapter 3
reviews <strong>the</strong> status <strong>of</strong> banking outreach and financial inclusion including currency management and Payment &
Settlement System aspects in <strong>the</strong> islands and makes several recommendations in this area. Chapters 4 to 6
cover <strong>the</strong> development <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> three major sectors viz. fisheries, agriculture and tourism, which can significantly
contribute to <strong>the</strong> economic development <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> islands. The final chapter, Chapter 7 seeks to put toge<strong>the</strong>r all
<strong>the</strong> observations and recommendations <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Working Group and provides a broad blueprint for <strong>the</strong> economic
growth <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> islands and <strong>the</strong> contribution <strong>the</strong> banking system can make towards this goal.