Revised guidelines for lockdown: Bank branches to remain open till direct benefit transfers are complete

Bank branches would be allowed to operate, as per normal working hours till the process of disbursing direct benefit cash transfers is complete, the Ministry of Home Affairs said in its fresh guidelines for the COVID-19 lockdown.

Bank branches and ATMs, information technology vendors for banking operations, banking correspondents (BCs), ATM operations and cash management agencies would be allowed to operate as per the list of select permitted activities allowed with effect from April 20.

Local administration would provide adequate security at bank branches and BCs, to maintain social distancing, law and order and staggering of account holders, the document said.

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Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), and capital and debt market services as notified by SEBI would also remain operational.

Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority and insurance companies would also be allowed to function, according to the document.

In his address to the nation on April 14, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had extended the countrywide lockdown in India by another 19 days till May 3.

The initial 21-day lockdown began on midnight of March 24 and was supposed to end on April 14. It was imposed to fight the spread of the deadly novel coronavirus or COVID-19, which has claimed over 1,19,600 lives across the world.

The lockdown led to supply chains across the country getting disrupted across the country, as factories and production were shut. The fresh guidelines seek to ease the pressure on supply chains.

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