‘Teething’ troubles set up seething queues
www.telegraphindia.com
Kalimpong, July 2: The introduction of core banking solutions (CBS) in the Kalimpong branch of the State Bank of India (SBI) has become a cause of harassment for its customers.
The explanation offered by senior bank officials is that the staff members are taking time to get a hang of the Internet-based system. But customers are in no mood to buy the argument.
“The transition from manual to core banking could have been much smoother, had the bank gone about it in a planned manner,” said Tsering Topgyal, the owner of an advertising agency. Topgyal has not been able to get his passbook updated despite many visits to the bank in the last 10 days.
The branch shifted to CBS on June 14. “Initially there will be some teething problems. It happens everywhere,” said P.K. Singh, the assistant general manager of SBI’s Region II in Siliguri.
However, bank employees admitted that the system has been introduced in a slipshod manner. “Only four or five of us were sent for training, that too for two or three days. Internet connectivity is a major problem as links fail repeatedly,” said a staff member here on condition of anonymity.
The employees are also miffed with their higher-ups after two officials, including a personal divisional manager, were transferred last week without any relievers.
The bank’s customers, too, are a piqued lot. If B.B. Tamang of Gangtok had to wait in the queue for two hours to draw his pension today, Anthony Pradhan, a contractor, is still awaiting a word on his cheque of about Rs 14 lakh that had been deposited with the bank on June 16.
Worse, even the two ATMs of the bank in town have not been functioning properly for the last few days.
“I had to visit the bank to withdraw money because I have not been able to access the ATM. But, even after four visits to the bank, it didn’t help,” said an Australian tourist.
July 23rd, 2007 at 2:44 am
I very much agree with the comments in respect of the poor service given by Kalimpong State Bank of India. It is just hopeless. You cannot draw out your own money from the bank. You have to go for six to seven times just to draw a simple amount of money. If it is a draft of a cheque then one has just to forget about it for a month since the transactions are not done even within 15 to 20 days. If this is the case with the bank then how will a customer survive or get their work done. Yes , this has happened to me too……….. I had a cheque given in Central bank of India which Ihad to get it drawn through my account in kalimpong bank ( which was badly needed for my labour payment) but unfortunately, even after a matter of 20 days I could not get the money and have still not been able to get it till the date of my writing) I had to go to the bank for six or seven times but each time was just given a mere answer . It has been sent……….. The employees of the Bank are just least borthered and also act very rudely to the customers. I hope and wish that the service of the Bank should be improved otherwise if other banks are introduced in Kalimpong then with this kind of service I think in near future everyone will shift their account or close their account with the Bank.