Following is the news taken from Times of India about first Talking ATM installed by a Regional Rural Bank (RRB). Recently Union Bank of India and State Bank of India (SBI) started to make accessible their ATMs to differently abled people as per the RBI guideline issued earlier. VARANASI: The district got its first talking ATM machine designed specially to facilitate its visually challenged customers. This is also the first talking ATM in Poorvanchal. The ATM machine, installed by the KashiGomtiSanyuktaGrameenBank (KGSGB) at its Akathabranch was inaugurated by the managing director, Union Bank of India(UBI) LalitSinha. UBI, the first in the banking sector to give India's first talking ATM in Ahmedabad, Gujarat has provided the technological support to KGSGBin the installation of the machine. With this KGSGBhas become the fist regional rural bank (RRB) of the country to start a talking ATM machine. The Talking ATM has a specially designed voice interface that enables the visually challenged customers to make transactions like pin change, balance enquiry and cash withdrawal independently just by following audio instructions that they will hear through the headphones both in Hindi and English specially made for the purpose. Also the ATM machine will have at several places, brail labels that will guide these customers as how to keep the machine display-screen blank while they are transacting. Visually challenged Shivparakash Singh a government teacher, was the first customer to make a transaction using the talking ATM machine at the AKatha branch of KGSGB. According to him the machine has instilled in him a new lease of confidence as now he would not have to seek a helper for making the banking transaction and thus will allow him to have more secure transactions. Chairman, KGSGB, SN Tripathi says, the bank will continue to open new branches and also ATMs in those rural areas that are still devoid of banking facility to ensure more inclusive banking. Infact KGSGC is going to start as many as 86 ATMs by the end of March 2014. As many as 11 ATM machines have started by KGSGB in the eastern UP, out of which three ATMs in Jaunpur, two each in Varanasi, Mau and Chandauli,one each in Ghazipur and Azamgarh have become operational from Thursday. Also from July the bank has started SMS alert facility for all its customers. As per the guidelines issued by the Reserve Bank of India in 2009, one third of the total ATMs started by any bank should be visually challenged friendly. The guidelines state that at least one third of new ATMs installed should be talking ATMs with Braille keypads and placed strategically after deliberations between banks to ensure that at least one talking ATM with a Braille keypad is generally available in each locality. Source : Times of India.
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