CHENNAI: The Tamil Nadu government has permitted cooperative banks to maintain the salary accounts of government employees and teachers, which are placed on par with empanelled nationalised and private sector banks.
With this decision, the Tamil Nadu State Apex Cooperative Bank (TNSC Bank) has been included in the list of authorised banks. Punjab National Bank and Bank of India have also been added to the panel. Existing banks handling salary accounts include State Bank of India, Indian Bank, Indian Overseas Bank, Canara Bank, Axis Bank, Bank of Baroda and Union Bank of India.
The announcement was made earlier by Finance Minister Thangam Thennarasu in the Assembly. Following this, the Director of Treasuries and Accounts entered into Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) with the empanelled banks. Similar MoUs have now been signed with cooperative banks as well.
According to government orders issued by the Additional Chief Secretary to Finance T. Udhayachandran, all empanelled banks maintaining government salary accounts have agreed to provide minimum benefits to employees. These include a term life insurance cover of Rs.10 lakh and a personal accident insurance cover of Rs.1 crore.
Officials said the inclusion of cooperative banks reflects the State government's confidence in the service quality and financial stability of the cooperative banking sector.
"This move demonstrates that cooperative banks are capable of providing services on par with nationalised banks, " a senior official from the cooperative department said. The decision is expected to strengthen the cooperative banking system while offering government employees wider choices and improved access to banking services.