Though why it took ages to do a bank transaction in State Bank of India (SBI) branches? Well, it was due to the age old 64kbps information technology (IT) network this branches used. But it’s no more that slow, Indian government owned telecom operator Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) has upgraded the IT networks of over 18,000 SBI branches spread across the country.
BSNL has upgraded the bank’s IT network from 64kbps to all way up to 2mbps, that’s 30 times faster than the existing one. With this upgrade these branches can speed up their banking operations and also enable it for more customer-friendly services.
The whole upgrade process was done in a time span of three to four months. Almost 400 bank branches were upgraded simultaneously and integrated into the system on a daily basis. The operator also ensured that upgrade process didn’t affect the customers, who were coming in masses due to the recent demonetization.
“We had to do this up gradation of over 18,000 SBI branches spread across the country in 3-4 months and had to carry out without hampering customer services through working all night,” said NK Mehta, BSNL Director, Enterprises Business. “Almost 400 bank branches were upgraded simultaneously and integrated into the system on a daily basis as we had a target to complete the entire project in due time,” he added.
BSNL claimed that after the upgrade, SBI banking network has had no difficulty in handling the sudden rush of customers. It also speeds up the entire banking operation as well as allowed the bank to offer other customer friendly services.