The Minister of State for Communications & Information Technology Sh Sachin Pilot informed the Lok Sabha yesterday that the gross deposit of Small Savings Scheme in Post Offices declined in the financial year 2011-12 as compared to the year 2010-11. The decline of gross deposit in small savings schemes is, among other things, due to investor’s choice of alternative instruments for effecting savings. The Government has taken following measures to make the small saving schemes more attractive:-
1. The rate of interest on Post Office Savings Account (POSA) has been increased from 3.5% to 4%. The ceiling of maximum balance in POSA 1 lakh in single account and 2 lakh in joint account) has been removed.
2. The maturity period for Monthly Income Scheme (MIS) and National Savings Certificate (NSC) has been reduced from 6 years to 5 years.
3. A new NSC instrument, with maturity period of 10 years, has been introduced.
