List, Leverage and Liberate India Post from Sarkar
Written By Admin on January 11, 2015 | Sunday, January 11, 2015
The
legacy is unmatched—established by Lord Clive and developed by Warren
Hastings, it began its operations first in Calcutta in 1774, followed by
Madras in 1786 and Bombay in 1793. It
has the largest reach and touches the lives of Indians across six lakh
villages. With over 1.55 lakh outlets, its branch network is larger than
that of all the scheduled commercial banks which boast of 1.25 lakh
branches. In
the 1830s, it booked journeys/seats on palkis, boats, cart or coach,
carrying mail—and managed/operated dak bungalows and lodges. In
1877, it offered the value payable parcel service—the early avatar of
the cash on delivery system e-commerce consumers are starry-eyed about.
In 1879, it created the WhatsApp of the times—the post card—for people
to communicate. By
1880, it was insuring lives. By 1908, it served 635 of 652 states, was
the money transfer agent for 321 treasury offices across districts and
the agency ordinary people trusted to send money. By 1930, it created
the postal order facilitating safe transfer for traders and travellers
and was a fully functional savings bank. It
could be India’s largest logistics company. It is one of the largest
retailers. With 320 million accounts and over Rs.6 lakh crore in
deposits, India Post is larger than many large banks. It manages PPF
accounts, savings instruments like NSC and KVP for millions and is ergo
one the largest asset management companies. As an aggregator of small
savings, it is among the biggest lenders to the government. India Post has been there and done that. Yet,
successive governments refused to recognise the potential—to deploy its
presence, reach and connectivity to deliver inclusion and catalyse
growth. As early as in 2000, I had advocated the idea of India Post as a
corporate conglomerate during the Vajpayee regime. In 2004, as GDP
growth accelerated and India was back on the radar of global investors, I
suggested (http://bit.ly/1DEYnud) the government corporatise India
Post, divest its shares to Indians and institutional investors to raise
funds to leverage its strengths. Since then, the world has moved on. The US Postal Service has been modernised. The
Royal Mail Group of Britain restructured itself. China Post Group—again
restructured for the modern world owns trucks, railway carriage and
aircraft—boasts of revenues of $58 billion and is ranked 168 on the
Fortune 500 list. Deutsche Post has been turned into a conglomerate with
revenues of $75 billion with a market capitalisation of $38 billion and
is ranked 110 on the Fortune 500 list. Japan Post Holdings—corporatised
during the Koizumi regime—boasts of revenues of $152 billion, is ranked
23 on the Fortune 500 list and is planning to list its financial
outfits to achieve an astonishing market capitalisation of around $ 81
billion. India
Post has the potential to be the flyover that links India and Bharat.
It has the potential to accelerate savings through financial
inclusion—using the KYC of address and the Aadhar number as a
springboard, it could instantly host over 600 million accounts. It can
be the real and virtual market platform for farmers—Amul II—that levels
the asymmetry in distribution of perishables and boosts production to
curb food price inflation. It can deliver both credit and insurance to
small farmers and micro enterprises. It is also the ideal one-stop shop
for government services. Every initiative will drive employment, income
generation and growth.The
principal problem is one of approach—regime after regime has viewed
India Post as a cost centre. India Post has the potential to be a huge
income centre and more importantly a force multiplier for the economy. There
is hope though. Finally, it would seem the idea of leveraging the
potential of India Post is on the table. This week, the task force
entrusted with sketching the modernisation of India Post delivered its
report to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The
good news is that the task force has in its 181 recommendations
suggested everything—well, almost—that we would want to hear. Under the
new architecture, India Post will offer postal services, host a Post
Bank, sell and market financial and insurance products, partner with
e-commerce outfits and be the outlet for government services. The
worry is that India Post will continue to be administered by a
department. The structure that inhibits growth/metamorphosis will
persist. The experience of Coal India, BSNL, MTNL or Air-India is hardly
inspiring. The migration of India Post will be delayed, even detained,
by the endemic affliction of incrementalism, of “phased plans” and
“pilot projects”. India
Post needs funds to leverage its reach and credibility. It also needs
liberation from the sarkar. The argument is not about public ownership.
It is about liberating institutions from political pelf, and instituting
professional management. Why not create a national shareholding
trust—that hosts India Post and all PSUs—answerable to Parliament? Source
:
http://www.newindianexpress.com/columns/shankkar_aiyar/List-Leverage-and-Liberate-India-Post-from-Sarkar/2015/01/11/article2613400.ece
FMA enhancement orders endorsed by DoP
Written By Admin on January 12, 2015 | Monday, January 12, 2015
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