Srinagar, Aug 24: The Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of Jammu and Kashmir Bank, Baldev Prakash, on Thursday said that the bank will be introducing a state-of-the-art solution to enhance its e-banking services and provide better customer experiences.
During the 85th annual general meeting at held at SKICCC, Prakash addressed the audience, stating that while J&K Bank’s M-Pay app is a popular banking application, it sometimes falls short of meeting their expectations. In response to this, the bank is implementing a state-of-the-art solution.
He further said that in the first quarter of the current year, the bank has achieved positive business growth, meeting the expectations set in the previous year. Prakash highlighted the significant influx of tourists, with 1.88 crore visitors to the Union Territory in the previous year, and expressed optimism about the growing number of tourists in the upcoming year, which he believes will contribute to the overall economic growth across sectors.
Prakash also mentioned the successful reach of J&K Bank’s initiatives, “Back to Village IV” and “My Town My Pride,” where the bank extended its services to 4,300 panchayats and 1000 wards in towns, in collaboration with the government. These efforts led to the disbursement of financial support to various individuals and enterprises. Through these initiatives, around Rs 1,100 crore were provided to microenterprises, benefiting 52,000 people.
He emphasised the bank’s commitment to supporting the MSME sector. Alongside tourism, the Kashmir valley is experiencing a bountiful apple and fruit harvest, and Prakash highlighted that improved all-weather connectivity will further enhance the economy of this sector, which in turn will positively impact Jammu and Kashmir Bank. Prakash expressed his conviction that increased tourist inflow into the valley will foster growth in various sectors of the Union Territory’s economy.
In response to a question, he explained that the bank was lenient with its One Time Settlement (OTS) scheme last year, launching three such schemes. These schemes aimed to assist borrowers in resolving their outstanding dues. Many borrowers availed the benefits of these schemes, but some did not respond to multiple requests. For those who did not capitalise on the scheme, appropriate actions were taken in accordance with standard operating procedures (SOPs), allowing customers time to repay their dues for the benefit of the public. The 85th Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the bank’s shareholders for the financial year 2022-23 was themed as ‘Unleashing the power of shared prosperity: facilitating Atma-Nirbharta’ and it was the first shareholders meet organised in-person by the bank after holding three consecutive AGMs virtually due to Covid19 guidelines, said a statement issued here.
MD & CEO Baldev Prakash chaired the meeting in presence of Advisor to LG Ladakh Dr Pawan Kotwal (IAS) – representing UT Ladakh Administration as Additional Director on Bank’s Board, Principal Secretary to Government (Finance Department) Santosh D Vaidya (IAS) – representing majority share-holder and promoter i.e. J&K UT Government on the Bank’s Board along with other Directors-on-Board of the Bank. Amid a large number of valuable shareholders, the meeting was also attended by the Bank’s General Managers, Deputy General Managers, Company Secretary and other officials.
The MD & CEO began his address to the shareholders by congratulating the countrymen in general and the scientists of ISRO in particular over the historic landing of India’s Chandrayaan-3 on the far side of the moon.
“What makes this event further special is that all of you are joining us on the occasion when the country is also celebrating its Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav on account of 75 years of independence,” he said. MD & CEO also acknowledged and appreciated the support of bank’s various stakeholders on the occasion by saying, “I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to each and every one of you, particularly our shareholders and the governments of UTs of J&K and Ladakh, for unwavering support and trust in this institution. It is because of your continued faith that we have been able to achieve remarkable milestones over the past year.”
Giving an overview of country’s banking sector, he said, “Driven by increased infrastructure spending, rapid project implementation, and ongoing reforms, the banking sector in India is well poised for robust progress. Credit has seen double-digit growth in FY2022-23 and the trend is expected to continue in FY24.” Summing up the Bank’s recent performance, MD said, “Our transformational journey for the last few years has been quite eventful and happening. Bank has witnessed remarkable performance across the business parameters as reflected in our Annual Results for the FY2022-23. And in recognition of this outstanding performance, I am delighted to announce that the Board of your Bank has recommended a dividend of ₹0.50 per equity share of Re 1 each fully paid for the financial year ended March 31, 2023.” “This decision reflects our commitment to sustainable growth and maximizing shareholder value”, he added.
