[caption id="attachment_285307" align="alignnone" width="565"]
Neiphiu Rio at the ceremony to flag off the dumper, on Saturday at the chief minister’s official residence in Kohima.[/caption]
Our Correspondent
Kohima, Nov. 30 (EMN): Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio flagged off a truck donated by the State Bank of India (SBI) to the Kohima Municipal Council (KMC) on Saturday in Kohima.
Delivering a short speech at his official residence here during the flag-off ceremony, Rio lauded the SBI for the gesture. He said, ‘partnering with the state is developing the country.’
Asserting that the state needs more banking facilities, the chief minister appealed to the SBI for support. “We look forward to your cooperation and support in the future.”
Speaking during a programme to mark the event at The Heritage in Kohima, Chief Secretary Temjen Toy acknowledged the SBI for the truck. He said, “When the KMC was wanting more and more such dumper trucks, the SBI have come at the right time to make this donation as part of their Corporate Social Responsibility.
Toy spoke about how the use of cash as a means of exchange of using goods and services became popular after the replacement of the barter system in the previous century.
Appealing to the SBI and other banks to open bank branches in the rural areas, he said people were greatly affected ‘after the announcement of demonetization’ few years ago.
Rural Development blocks should be given priority and covered with banking facilities, the chief secretary said. He spoke about the challenge in dispersing payments for various schemes not only to the rural people but also to various government departments.
Sunil Kumar Tandon, chief general manager of the SBI’s north eastern circle, said in his speech that the bank was a committed partner in the state.
He mentioned that there are 68 SBI bank branches across the state of which 40% are public sector banks. More than 50% ATMs are spread across the state. He stated that SBI banks are in the position to open more bank branches in the near future.
The general manager expressed happiness in handing over the dumber as ‘a token of love and affection’ to Kohima for a cleanliness drive which he termed would go a long way. He assured the SBI’s support in whatever capacity towards the cleanliness of the state even in the future.
On behalf of the SBI, Tandon also handed over a cheque of INR 10 lakh to Toy for the Hornbill Festival.
In other matters, the SBI has come up with a foreign exchange counter at Kisama to facilitate foreign tourists during the Hornbill Festival.
