The key driver in the success of these initiatives would undoubtedly be technology. Technology today provides a lever which can enable multilevel leapfrogging in pursuit of financial inclusion. Andhra Pradesh has started a project that aims to improve the mechanism for paying pensions and unemployment benefits to around half a million people in villages in the Karimnagar and Warangal regions of the state.
It is a tiny start – so far some 40,000 cards have been issued – but the potential is clear. The initiative is to have a bank tie up and extend this model to other places and states. The role of financial literacy in this regard can't be over-emphasised.