CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of the Study
The term „financial inclusion‟ has acquired universal acceptance as both a
mere access to financial services as well as deeper processes (World Bank 2012).
Financial inclusion is now a global agenda, and is emerging as a priority for
policymakers and regulators for financial sector development. In Asia, many
countries are employing financial inclusion as an important part of their strategies
to achieve inclusive growth (ADB, 2014). Poverty and exclusion continue to
dominate the socio-economic and political discourse in India since Independence.
Since the early national plans, successive governments have formulated strategies
in improving access to finance and reduce poverty. India has been proactive in
pursuing a strategy of equitable development through the efforts of Government of
India and Reserve Bank of India to broaden financial inclusion. Even before the
emergence of Financial Inclusion as a buzzword in the banking arena, the Indian
Polity had shown tremendous foresight in formulating policies for them. The
institutionalization of the system for financial inclusion in India started with the
establishment of Credit Cooperatives, following the enactment of Cooperative
Societies Act in 1904. India has adopted multi-dimensional approaches for
achievement and promotion of financial inclusion ranging from nationalisation of
commercial banks to SHG-Bank Linkage scheme. As the regulator of banks,
Reserve Bank of India has played a pivotal role in development of banking in
India and has taken several initiatives to promote development and social banking.
The Lead Bank Scheme was introduced by RBI in 1969 to develop a structure, so
that the benefits of banking will reach out to the poor. Nationalisation of
commercial banks in 1969 was a major development in this regard. It facilitated
rapid expansion of the banking system to hitherto unbanked areas. In 1975,
Regional Rural Banks was established with the same objective followed by
Priority Sector Lending guidelines in 1980 and Service Area Approach in 1989.
The policy intent of all these approaches was to help the poor, and never identified
the business potential among the rural masses but considers it as a mere social
obligation. It was more focused on branch expansion and meeting the credit
requirements of specific sectors and less emphasis on the inclusion of individuals
 Introduction

and households. However, the new approach is based on the comprehensive

definition of financial inclusion with adoption of technology and the focus was
shifted from growth to inclusive growth. The recent approach focuses on the
financial inclusion of individuals and households. The term financial inclusion is
perceived as, “the process of ensuring access to appropriate financial products
and services needed by all members of the society in general and vulnerable
groups in particular, at an affordable cost in a fair and transparent manner by
mainstream institutional players” (Mundra, 2016).

The Reserve Bank of India has made instrumental efforts over the last
decade to create basic financial service facilities to the excluded segments of the
society. In the Annual Policy Document of 2005-06, RBI has directed banks to
issue all printed materials to the customers in regional languages. The Know Your
Customer (KYC) requirements for opening bank accounts have been relaxed since
August 2005 and simplified for small value deposit accounts with balance not
exceeding rupees 50000 and aggregate credit not exceeding rupees 100000 in a
year. In November 2005, Reserve Bank directed all Scheduled commercial banks
to make available a basic banking „No-frills‟ account with nil or very low
minimum balances that would make such accounts accessible to vast sections of
the population. In December 2005, banks were advised to consider the
introduction of General Purpose Credit Card (GCC) at their rural and semi- urban
branches. GCC is offered as a multipurpose easy credit facility to the poor workers
in the unorganized sector based on the assessment of income without any
emphasis on security and end use purpose. In January 2006, Reserve Bank of India
allowed banks to use the services of NGOs, SHGs and MFIs as intermediaries for
banking outreach in the form of BC/BF model. The BC model allowed banks to do
„cash in- cash out‟ transactions at a location much closer to the rural population,
thus addresses the last mile problem. Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana
(PMJDY) was introduced in the country from August 2014, as a National Mission
on Financial Inclusion encompassing an integrated approach to bring about

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 Introduction

comprehensive financial inclusion of all the households in the country. The plan
envisaged universal access to banking facilities with at least one basic banking
account for every household, access to credit, insurance and pension facility.

However, a significant proportion of the households, especially in rural

areas, are still outside the coverage of formal banking system. The figures of the
financial exclusion are very glaring; out of 24.67 crore households in the country,
only 58.70 per cent households had access to banking services, and of the 16.78
crore rural households only 54.46 per cent households were availing banking
services (Ministry of Finance, GOI, 2012). Global Findex Survey (2014), of the
World Bank reported that 53 per cent of adults in the country have a formal
account and 43 percent of the accounts opened are dormant (The World Bank,
2014; Demirguc-Kunt, et al., 2015). “Committee on Comprehensive Financial
Services for Small Businesses and Low Income Households” had set a vision of
offering a Universal Bank Account (UEBA) to each Indian resident, above the age
of 18 years, by January 1, 2016. However, banks have not been able to include
vast segments of the population, especially low income households of the society
into the ambit of formal banking. According to the Inclusive Finance India Report
2017, 64 percent of the adults in the country have a bank account with formal
banking institutions and 36 percent are still out of the formal banking ambit
(Sriram, 2017). According to World Bank‟s Global Findex Data 2017, 31 percent
of the adults in the world population remain unbanked and nearly half live in just
seven developing economies including India (Demirguc-Kunt, Klappe, Ansar, and
Hess, 2018). Hence this study proposes a comprehensive analysis, covering both
demand and supply side on the selected financial inclusion schemes in order to
understand the ground realities at the grass root level. Kerala with its exceptional
nature in its characteristics like higher literacy, lesser marginality of cast
differences, better infrastructure of rural areas and better gender treatment, is
expected to have a wider coverage by the formal banking system.

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 Introduction

1.2 Statement of the Problem

Inspite of an array of financial inclusion initiatives by the government and
Reserve Bank of India, sizable portion of the low income households continue to
be excluded from the formal banking fold. A field study conducted in the coastal
district of Kollam in the state of Kerala revealed the fact that, the stellar increase
and growth rates of financial inclusion reported in Kerala is far from reality. Fifty
four percent of the sample households are out of the formal banking system and
many households continue to access the services from informal sources like
money-lenders, traders and other means (Karmarkar, Banarjee, and Mohapatra,
2011). This is paradoxical for a state like Kerala, with its high literacy rate,
intensive bank network and high spread of SHG programmes like Kudumbasree
and this brings a greater significance to the study of financial inclusion in the state.
To obtain a clear picture, it is worthwhile to have a close look at the effectiveness
of financial inclusion policies of the Reserve Bank of India with special reference
to Kerala, which will also reflect the state of affairs in other states of India. The
study focuses on the effectiveness of the financial inclusion schemes; No-frills
account, GCC, BC/BF and SHG-Bank Linkage scheme, in terms of its outcomes.
Further the study will examine whether the low income households benefitted
from these schemes or not. The study also assesses the effectiveness of the
financial inclusion initiatives from the supply side by evaluating the branch level
efforts of financial inclusion, assesses the social orientation of the bank managers
and analyses the feedback from the managers on the effectiveness of financial
inclusion schemes.

1.3 Significance of the Study

Financial inclusion offers a win – win proposition for the people, banks
and the nation. The Government, Reserve Bank of India and formal financial
institutions are operating with a plan of universal access to banking, with a thrust
on inclusive growth. However, a sizable portion of the population especially the
rural households, are still excluded from the formal banking net. There is no

4
 Introduction

clear picture about the effectiveness of the financial inclusion initiatives in the
country and the existing initiatives in measuring financial inclusion are
commendable. At the same time, there is a need to focus on the micro and
distributional dimensions. The effectiveness of financial inclusion initiatives is to
be scientifically assessed and analysed. The distributional information from
household level survey, such as demographic characteristics, financial literacy
and its impact on financial behaviour, participation in financial inclusion
schemes, perceptions about the financial inclusion initiatives etc., were much
crucial to the proper understanding of the status of financial inclusion. It is also
important to understand the perception of the bank managers about the financial
inclusion initiatives, as they have a direct contact with the deprived sections of
the society. Their perceptions about such initiatives, the practical difficulties they
face in the implementation of schemes and their observations about the ground
realities will be instrumental in the efforts of upscaling the existing financial
inclusion efforts. The significance of the study lies on the fact that identification
of the ground realities at the grass root level, will be helpful for the policy
makers and regulators to design and implement any further actions to address the
gaps if any, and to ensure that financial inclusion objectives and targets are on
track, or to develop a more fruitful financial inclusion strategy. Financial service
providers can also use such measures to design customized financial products for
specific regions and categories of consumers. Hence the present study becomes
relevant.

1.4 Scope of the Study

The study was limited to Kerala focusing on the low income households
residing in the rural parts of the state for the demand side data and Bank
managers in the rural and semi urban branches, for the supply side data. The
sample of the study was collected from three zones in Kerala based on the
geographical spread focusing on two districts from each zone. The main
intention of the study was to assess the effectiveness of the selected financial

5
 Introduction

inclusion schemes: No-frills account, SHG-Bank Linkage, BC /BF and General

Credit Card, on the low income households and to assess the effectiveness of
branch level efforts of financial inclusion initiatives and also to analyse the
perception of the branch managers on the financial inclusion schemes.

1.5 Objectives of the Study

1. To assess the effectiveness of the financial inclusion schemes; No-frills
(BSBD) accounts, SHG-Bank Linkage scheme, BC/BF facility and GCC,
offered to low income households by the commercial banks in Kerala.

2. To study the influence of demographic variables on the low income

households‟ awareness about financial inclusion schemes, their ability to
participate in the schemes and its impact on the desired outcomes of the
schemes.

3. To analyse the nature of income, saving pattern, credit needs and credit
behaviour of low income households and to identify the reasons, if any that
refrain them from formal banking channel.

4. To assess the effectiveness of branch level efforts of financial inclusion by

examining availability, penetration and performance of financial inclusion
schemes.

5. To obtain and analyse the bank managers‟ appraisal on the effectiveness of

financial inclusion schemes and their perception on factors affecting branch
level efforts of financial inclusion.

6. To measure the level of efficiency of bank branches on financial inclusion

efforts and to compare the level of efficiency among the banks.

7. To provide valuable information resource and suggestions which will assist the
formulation of strategies to improve the financial inclusion process.

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 Introduction

1.6 Hypotheses of the Study

H1: There is no association between the demographic factors and awareness of
the households on financial inclusion schemes

H2: There is no association between the demographic variables and participation

of the households in the financial inclusion schemes.

H3: There is no significant difference in the impact of financial inclusion

schemes in terms of its outcomes on the sample households with respect to
demographic factors

H4: There is no significant difference in the perception of the households on

supply side barriers of financial inclusion with respect to demographic
factors.

H5: There is no significant difference in the financial literacy and financial

behaviour of households with respect to demographic factors.

H6: There is no significant difference in the managers rating on effectiveness of

modes used for disseminating information with respect to demographic
factors.

H7: There is no association between the demographic factors of the bank branch
and financial inclusion schemes offered.

H8: There is no significant difference in the penetration and performance of

financial inclusion schemes with respect to demographic factors.

H9: There is no significant difference in the perception of managers on

effectiveness of financial inclusion schemes with respect to demographic
factors.

H10: There is no significant difference in the perception of managers on supply

side barriers of financial inclusion with respect to demographic factors.

H11: There is no significant difference in the perception of managers on the

factors affecting financial inclusion efforts of the branch with respect to
demographic factors.

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 Introduction

1.7 Methodology
1.7.1 Search for Literature
An earnest attempt was made to collect all available literature from
different journals, magazines, newspapers, books and websites. The researcher
visited the University libraries at Kerala, M.G, and CUSAT, CDS
Thiruvananthapuram and NIBM Pune in this regard.

1.7.2 Pilot Survey and Finalisation of the Instrument

A pilot study was conducted in Alappuzha district for finalizing the
interview schedule for household survey. Fifty sample households were contacted
and on the basis of the pilot study necessary changes were made to the instrument.
In order to finalise the instrument for bank manager survey, 25 bank managers
with different designations, from chief manager to deputy managers, with vast
experience in rural banking, were personally contacted; and based on their
suggestions necessary changes were made in the instrument.

1.7.3 Sampling Design

Universe
Since the present research study was intended to be carried out among
participants from the demand side and supply side of financial inclusion process,
the population of the study comprises of two groups. The population of the first
category is the low income households in Kerala from the demand side and the
managers in the rural and semi urban bank branches in Kerala from the supply side
of financial inclusion process.

1.7.4 Sample Size

Sample Size for Demand Side Survey

The sample size is calculated using the formula

4 𝑍𝛼2 𝑝 (1 − 𝑝)
𝑛=
𝑤2

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 Introduction

where n is the sample size of the study group, p is the proportion of BPL
households without banking access, 𝑍𝛼 is the confidence level, and w is the total
width of the expected CI.

Review of literature revealed that 54% of the BPL households in Kerala do

not have access to formal banking sector (Karmarkar, Banarjee, and Mohapatra,
2011; Ministry of Finance, 2012). At 5% significance level and assuming the
width of expected confidence interval as 0.075, the required sample size is
obtained as 678. However, a sample of 750 is taken for the study as outlined in
the succeeding pages.

Sample Size for Supply Side Survey

The sample size is calculated using the formula

4 𝑍𝛼2 𝑝 (1 − 𝑝)
𝑛=
𝑤2

where n is the sample size of the study group, p is the proportion of rural
banks in Kerala, 𝑍𝛼 is the confidence level, and w is the total width of the
expected CI.

Banking network data of SLBC Kerala revealed that, 75% of the

commercial bank branches in Kerala are either rural or semi-urban branches
(SLBC Kerala, 2015). At 5% significance level and assuming the width of
expected confidence interval as 0.2, the required sample size is obtained as 82.
However, a sample of 100 managers is taken for the study as outlined in the
succeeding pages.

1.7.5 Sampling Unit

Demand Side Survey
The sampling unit of the demand side survey is low income households
whose name appeared in the Kerala State BPL List as per BPL survey of 2011.
For conducting the survey of households, Multistage random sampling was
adopted. In the first stage Kerala state was divided into three zones based on the

9
 Introduction

geographical and cultural similarities. North zone comprised of Kasaragod,

Kannur, Wayanad, Kozhikode and Malappuram districts. Central zone comprised
of Palakkad, Thrissur, Eranakulam, and Idukki districts. South zone comprised of
Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Alappuzha, Pathanamthitta and Kottayam districts.
From each zone two districts are selected at random; Wayanad and Kozhikode
from North zone, Palakkad and Idukki from Central zone and Alappuzha and
Kollam from South zone. From the chosen districts, two panchayats each was
selected at random. They are Ambalavayal and Meenangady panchayats from
Wayanad, Thamarasseerry and Puthupady panchayats from Kozhikkode,
Sholayoor and Agali panchayats from Palakkad, Vazhathoppu and Arakkulam
panchayats from Idukki, Kuthiyathodu and Purakkadu panchayats from Alapuzha,
Thrickadavoor and Vettikkavala panchayats from Kollam. At the next level, 2
wards were chosen at random from the selected panchayats. Finally, households
are randomly selected from these wards. 125 samples were chosen from each of
the districts selected and thereby the total samples selected for the study is 750.

Table 1.1: Sample Design of Households for Demand Side Survey

Zone District Total Overall

125
Wayanad
(16.66%) 250
North zone
125 (33.33%)
Kozhikode
(16.66%)
125
Palakkad
(16.66%) 250
Central zone
125 (33.33%)
Idukki
(16.66%)
125
Alappuzha
(16.66%) 250
South zone
125 (33.33%)
Kollam
(16.66%)
750 750
Total
(100%) (100%)
Source: Primary data

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 Introduction

Supply Side Survey

For conducting the supply side survey, rural and semi urban bank branches
are selected from the districts, from where sample households were selected. The
researcher visited the bank branches in the panchayats selected for household
survey and branches in the nearby locations and made a personal request to the
branch heads to participate in the survey. Most of the branch heads directly
participated in the survey, some managers deputed their junior managers to
participate in the survey and some others refused to participate in the survey. The
final sample consists of 100 branch managers and the following table shows the
details of the sample design.

Table 1.2: Sample Design of Bank Branches for Supply Side Survey

Frequency Percent
North 25 25%
Zone Central 50 50%
South 25 25%
Overall 100 100%
Public Sector 63 63%
Bank Type Private Sector 37 37%
Overall 100 100%
Rural 22 22%
Bank Location Semi-Urban 78 78%
Overall 100 100
Source: Primary data

1.7.6 Data Analysis

Assessment of Effectiveness of Financial Inclusion Schemes
As the study has assessed the effectiveness of financial inclusion schemes
on the low income households in the rural parts of Kerala, analysis was made by
studying the three important dimensions of financial inclusion-Awareness,
Participation, and Impact. Proportion of sample households who had awareness
about the scheme and the proportion who are availing (participating) the scheme
indicates the effectiveness of the scheme in terms of awareness and participation

11
 Introduction

dimensions of financial inclusion. For measuring the impact of the schemes on

attaining its desired outcomes, a five point Likert scale was used for quantifying
the response statements. The impact of the selected schemes of financial inclusion
initiative, whether effective or not were assessed on the agreement or
disagreement of the respondents on the desired outcomes of the scheme,
constructed with a certain number of statements. Five alternatives were given for
indicating their perception regarding the statements in the interview schedule. For
each response, scores of five, four, three, two and one were assigned to stand for
strongly agree, agree, neutral, disagree and strongly disagree. Based on the overall
mean scores of the constructs of the desired outcomes of the schemes, the impact
of the scheme is assessed. When the overall mean value was above three (mid
value on the scale) the scheme was considered effective in attaining its desired
outcome and when it was below three then it will be considered as not effective.
The following standard has been set for assessing the effectiveness of the scheme
in attaining its desired outcomes;

Score Assessment
Above 4.5 Extremely Effective
4 to 4.5 Very Effective
3.5 to 4 Effective
3 to 3.5 Moderately Effective
Less than 3 Not Effective

The parametric tests- t test and ANOVA were administered to find out the
statistical difference in the effectiveness of the scheme in respect of its impact
among the sub- groups in the sample.

Tools used for Analysis

The data collected from the two surveys were analysed with the help of
SPSS software. Descriptive statistics were used to describe and summarize the
data collected from the respondents. The common measures such as frequency,

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 Introduction

percentage, mean and standard deviation were used. The statistical tests used to
test the significance of the hypotheses include chi-square test, student‟s t test, one
way ANOVA and Data Envelop Analysis (DEA).

Chi- Square Test

The Chi-square test is applied to test whether there is a significant
association between two categorical variables, with classical test for independence.
In this study, the Chi-square statistic is used to test whether there is any association
between demographics and households‟ awareness about financial inclusion
schemes and association between demographics and households‟ participation in
the financial inclusion schemes. The test is also used to identify whether there is
any association between the demographic features of the bank branches in
delivering financial inclusion schemes.

t- Test
The Independent Samples t Test compares the means of two independent
groups on the same continuous, dependent variable. The test is conducted to
determine whether there is any statistical evidence that the associated population
means are significantly different. In the study t test was used to compare the mean
scores of managers‟ appraisal on the effectiveness of various financial inclusion
schemes, effectiveness of branch level efforts of financial inclusion and their
perception on factors affecting branch level efforts of financial inclusion based on
the basic demographic features.

One way ANOVA

The one way ANOVA is used to compare the means of more than two
populations. One way ANOVA is used in the demand side survey data for testing
the significance of mean score differences on the desired outcomes of the selected
financial inclusion schemes based on the important demographic features (zone
and social class) of the sample households. It is used to compare mean score of
managers‟ appraisal on the effectiveness of various financial inclusion schemes,
effectiveness of branch level efforts of financial inclusion and their perception on

13
 Introduction

factors affecting branch level efforts of financial inclusion based on the basic
demographic features.

Post-Hoc Multiple comparisons

Rejection of null hypothesis in ANOVA only tells that all population
means are not equal. Post hoc tests further analyses the result of the test. Post hoc
tests are a set of comparisons between group means. Multiple comparisons were
used to assess which group‟s mean differ from others, once the overall F test
shows at least one difference. This test involves comparing the means of all
combinations of pairs of groups. Each group of participants were compared to the
entire remaining group. Post hoc (LSD) test was used for determining the
significant differences that exists among the means.

Data Envelopment Analysis

Any institution or activity can be evaluated for its performance by using the
concept of efficiency. Both parametric and non-parametric approaches are used to
measure the efficiency of any decision making units. Data Envelopment Analysis
(DEA) is a non-parametric linear programming tool used for performance
evaluation of economic units. Compared to the corresponding parametric method
this approach requires very few prior assumptions on input-output relationship. In
a single input-single output case efficiency can be easily quantified or compared
by calculating yield or output per unit. The DEA method enables extension of the
single input-single output technical efficiency measure to the multiple output-
multiple input case. The DEA methodology was developed by Charnes, Cooper
and Rhodes (1978). Later Banker, Charnes and Cooper (1984) extended the
approach to the case of variable returns to scale. Several studies have used DEA to
measure the efficiency in Indian banking sector also. Das (1997) used DEA to
study the technical, allocative and scale efficiency of different PSBs for the period
1990-1996. Saha and Ravisankar (2000) analyzed the performance of Indian banks
using DEA approach. Bhattacharya et al. (1997), Sathye (2003), Sahoo et al.,
(2007), Mahesh and Rajeev (2009) and Kumar and Charles (2011) have also

14
 Introduction

evaluated the performance of various categories of banks using DEA approach.

All these studies were at bank level, where performance is evaluated and
compared against another one or group of banks. Here financial inclusion of
surveyed banks is measured using Data Envelop Analysis (DEA). Performance on
financial inclusion initiatives is considered as efficiency with which a financial
system transforms inputs (human resource parameters and positive response to
financial inclusion efforts) into outputs (financial inclusion initiatives). Using the
DEA method, a financial inclusion index is calculated as a relative measure of
ranking of a bank‟s system in relation to the best in class, as it is identified by the
DEA optimization method.

1.8 Reference Period

The surveys for the study were conducted during October 2015 to July
2016.

1.9 Limitations of the Study

 Among the prominent financial inclusion schemes initiated by the Reserve
Bank of India from 2005 onwards, No-frills accounts, General Credit Card
(GCC), BC/ BF and SHG-Bank Linkage schemes are included in the study.
 No-frills account scheme is renamed as Basic Savings Bank Deposit
Account (BSBDA) and special features were added under Pradhan Mantri
Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY). However, the study covers only the basic
savings bank account scheme under PMJDY and has not considered the
other benefits offered to the beneficiaries under the scheme.

1.10 Scheme of the Report

The thesis is presented in Six chapters as outlined below;

Chapter I – Introduction: Provides the introduction to the research topic,

statement of the problem, significance and scope of the present research,
objectives, hypotheses, methodology of the study, limitations of the study and
outline of the chapters.

15
 Introduction

Chapter II - Review of Literature: Research articles were reviewed under

financial inclusion and inclusive growth to have a clear understanding and deep
insight into the broad area of study. The available literature has been classified
into six areas, viz. Financial Inclusion and Financial exclusion, Causes of
Financial Exclusion, Policy initiatives of Financial Inclusion, Evaluation of
Financial Inclusion Schemes and Initiatives, Financial Inclusion and Economic
Development and Financial literacy, Financial Behaviour and Financial Inclusion.

Chapter III - Financial inclusion: Policy Responses - An Overview: Provides the

theoretical basis for financial exclusion and financial inclusion. It analyses the
reasons for financial exclusion and explains the policy response on financial
inclusion efforts in International arena and also in Indian Context.

Chapter IV - Financial Inclusion Schemes: Reflections from the Demand Side:

This chapter outlines the details regarding the distributional information from
household level survey, such as demographic characteristics, financial situation of
households, awareness and participation of households in the financial inclusion
schemes, perception of households about the financial inclusion initiatives,
assessment of financial literacy and financial behaviour of the sample households.

Chapter V - Financial Inclusion Schemes: An Extrospective Analysis from the

Supply Side: Gives the statistics regarding demographic characteristics of the bank
branches, the branch heads participated in the survey, perception of the bank
managers about the financial inclusion initiatives, appraisal on the effectiveness of
such schemes and managers‟ perception on factors affecting branch level efforts of
financial inclusion.

Chapter VI - Findings, Suggestions and Conclusion: Give a brief summary of

the study, major findings of the study, suggestions, conclusion and indicates the
scope for further research.

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 Introduction

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