Shri Devajit Khound, IES urges industry leaders to invest in North East

Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region, GOI actively working towards boosting financial literacy in the North East: Shri Debajit Khound, IES

Shri Devajit Khound, IES, Senior Economic Adviser, Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region, Government of India urged industry leaders to invest in the North-East region at the CII North East Banking and FinTech Conclave 2023 organized by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) on December 19, 2023 at New Delhi.

Highlighting the positive developments in the North East Region, including increasing number of bank accounts, growing Aadhar penetration, improving mobile connectivity and rising digital payments in the region, Shri Devajit Khound asserted that there is no reason for North-East to remain financially excluded. He added that the Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region, Government of India, is actively working towards boosting financial literacy in the North East. The North Eastern Development Finance Corporation Limited (NEDFi) is expanding financial services into the unreached areas of North East through Business Correspondence Model.

Addressing the conclave, Mr. C S Ghosh, Past Chairman of CII Eastern Region and Managing Director & CEO of Bandhan Bank said, “To scale financial inclusion, accessible, secure, and responsible digital public infrastructure is very important. Government digital initiatives such as Aadhaar, UPI and DigiLocker have helped in effectively reaching people for financial inclusion.” Mr. Ghosh acknowledged the positive impact of government initiatives like Jan Dhan Yojana, PM Mudra Yojana and PM Suraksha Bima Yojana in augmenting financial inclusion in the North East region. In discussing opportunities for the North East, he emphasized the role of tourism development, need of focusing on Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), development of logistics supply chain and importance of financial literacy and digital literacy for the overall development of North East Region. He suggested for the Trickle Up approach for North East by financially including women and people in rural area which would also have great impact on creating jobs.

“The key obstacles to Fintech expansion in the North East are lack of identity promotion, poor telecom connectivity, and a general lack of awareness," remarked Mr. Padmanabhan Raja Jaishankar, Managing Director of IIFCL, during the conclave. Despite these challenges, he expressed optimism that these obstacles can be turned into opportunities. He emphasized the need to address the connectivity issue as a key factor in accelerating FinTech growth in the North East region. CII North East Banking and FinTech Conclave 2023 was organized with a specific focus on enhancing the digital payment framework to foster financial inclusivity in the North East.

19 December 2023

New Delhi