BENGALURU, 12 JULY

An unexpected rush of women was seen at the General Post Office (GPO) on Friday from the early hours after a rumour that the postal department was depositing Rs 8,000 in every account opened under the India Post Payment Bank (IPPB). The rumours that circulated on WhatsApp over the past few weeks, went viral in community and local Resident Welfare Association (RWA) groups.

Around 150 women, including civic workers and daily wage earners, gathered at the GPO from the early hours of Friday, aiming to link their Aadhar cards to the post office.

The scheme aims to provide banking facilities to people in rural areas by linking 1.55 lakh post office branches with the IPPB. It facilitates financial transactions, including online transactions and direct benefit transfers, making banking easier for rural populations.

Despite the scheme being launched seven years ago, many people in these areas remain unaware of its details.

One of the postmasters at the GPO said, “Our duty is to open the accounts for them, and we do that. We don’t know anything further.”

General post office officials clarified that they were there to open IPPB accounts under the IPPB scheme.

 Speaking to Salar News, a Kuli worker said, “We just heard from our boss that we need to come and link our Aadhar cards to the post office because we might get some amount. We don’t know anything else.” Another worker said, “I don’t think I will be getting any money. Who will give us? We just came and did it because our boss said.” Salar News