look news india
New Delhi/Lucknow: India Post is still considered the most reliable medium of investment and savings for crores of middle class and rural families of the country. People keep their hard-earned money safe in schemes like Post Office Savings Account, Recurring Deposit (RD), Public Provident Fund (PPF), Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana (SSY) or Kisan Vikas Patra. But many times, due to house cleaning, travel or any other reason, the post office passbook gets lost or torn. As soon as the passbook is lost, the biggest fear that arises in the minds of the account holders is that how will they get the account of their deposited money and can any other person withdraw money from their account. As per Postal Department rules, a passbook is only a physical record of your transactions; Your real money remains completely safe in the Core Banking System (CBS) of the post office. In case of loss of passbook, you can not only get a complete account of your money, but can also get a new duplicate passbook issued by paying a very nominal fee.
If your post office passbook is lost, then first of all you should contact your home branch i.e. the post office where your account is opened. To get a duplicate passbook issued, the account holder has to fill a prescribed application form. If you have the old account number or CIF ID, then the work gets done even faster, but even if you do not remember the account number, with the help of Aadhar card and registered mobile number, the post office staff can easily find your account in the system. Along with the application form, you have to attach a self-attested photocopy of Aadhar Card, PAN Card or Voter ID as proof of your identity and address. Along with this, a general declaration also has to be given regarding the loss of passbook. Under post office rules, a fixed nominal fee is charged for issuing duplicate passbook (about Rs 50 to Rs 100 including GST, depending on the scheme), which you can deposit in cash or by deducting it from your account. After verification of documents, a new duplicate passbook is handed over to you with the approval of the postmaster.
It may take one to two working days to generate a duplicate passbook, but if you need to immediately see the complete account of your deposits and previous transactions, you can use digital means from the comfort of your home. Indian Postal Department has launched ‘India Post Mobile Banking’ app and internet banking facility for its customers. If your mobile number is linked to the account, you can log in to the app and download the live balance of your savings account, RD, PPF and Sukanya account and e-Statement for the last several months in PDF format. Additionally, if you have linked the India Post Payments Bank (IPPB) app to your post office savings account, from there also you can view the complete transaction history in a single click. Customers who do not use smartphones can also get their account balance information instantly by calling the Department of Posts toll-free number 1800-266-6868 from their registered mobile number or through SMS banking.
Although matching of the signature of the account holder and the OTP received on the registered mobile number is mandatory for withdrawal from any post office account, it is still very important to be cautious in case of losing the passbook. If you feel that your passbook may have fallen into the wrong hands or has been stolen, visit your nearest post office without delay and request a temporary ‘Debit Freeze’ on the account to prevent any unauthorized withdrawals. Apart from this, for security reasons, it is also wise to lodge a simple NCR/Lost Report with the nearest police station, especially if the account is a joint account or a large amount is deposited in it. With the core banking system now fully implemented in Lucknow, Kanpur, Varanasi, Prayagraj and rural post offices of Uttar Pradesh, customers can also get their account information and statements from any nearest CBS post office. To avoid such problems in future, always keep a clear photo of the first page of your new passbook safe in your mobile, in which your account number and CIF number are clearly written.