PERFORMANCE OF INDIAN POST OFFICE SAVING SCHEMES IN RECENT TRENDS.

Abstract

Introduction of Indian post office:-Savingsshapes the important part of the economy of any nation. With the savings, in various options available to the people, the money acts as the driver for growth of the country. Indianfinancial prospect toopresents a plethora of avenues to the investors. Thoughcertainly not the best or deepest of markets in the world, it has reasonable options for an averageindividual to investhissavings. Investorsneeds to invest and earn return on theiridleresources and generate a specifiedsum of money for a specific goal in life and make a provision for an uncertain future. Investment culture among the people of a country is an essential prerequisite for capital formation and the fastergrowth of an economy. Investment culture refers to the attitudes, perceptions, and willingness of individuals, and institutions in placingtheirsavings in variousfinancialassets, more popularlyknown as investmentsor Postal Savings. A study on preferences and level of Satisfaction thus assumes a greatersignificance in the formulation of policies for the development and regulation of savings inGeneral and protection and promotion of small and house-holdinvestors in particular. This isbecause of lack of awarenessamong the small and householdinvestors, poorinvestmentclimate, and loss of confidence of existinginvestors in Postal Savings. It isextremely important for the policymakers and regulatoryauthorities to understand the investors " perceptions, preferences, and theirconcerns on the market. Small savings of India Post are a popularinvestment option for risk-averse investors. Post office investmentsprovideflexibility and eventaxbenefits. Post office has long served as the backbone of communication and smalldeposits. For than 150 years the department of posts has played a pivotalrole in facilitating communication throughout the nation there by aiding in socio-economicdevelopment of the country. Post officervaried services; theirworkis not justrestricted to delivering mails. Theyacceptdeposits, provideretail services like sale of forms, bill collection etc, providesavingschemes, life insurancecoveretc, with a network of more than1.5 lakh post offices across the country, India post offersvarious post office savingschemes. These are risk free investment options that are safe and secured and provideinvestorswith capital gains withouttaxdeductionat source (TDS). Variousinvestmentopportunities are available for an individual to hissaving and hecanchoose the appropriateinvestmentschemes, which suit hisneeds. There are different types of opportunitiesprovided by manyfinancial institutions like commercial banks, co-operativebanks, post office savingbanks. Life insurance corporation public limitedcompany of all the Corresponding Author:-k. Baby saranya. Address:-Assistant professor commerce department 9/24j mohana bai nagar,sugunapuram (west), kuniyamuthur(po) coimbatore-641 008. ISSN: 2320-5407 Int. J. Adv. Res. 6(3), 998-1004 999 abovementioned institutions, post office savingbanksplay vital role. It providesnumerousbenefits to the investors. Post office savingbanksis the largestsavings institutions in the country. With a view to mobilizingsavings of people withrelativelysmallincome and circulating in them a spirit of thrift and savings, the central Government has endeavoured to make the national savingsmovementpopular by offeringhighreturnsthanthosegiven by scheduledbanks. There are a number of attractive schemes, welldesigned to meet the Indi dual requirements of differentinvestors. Taxsavingfeatures of thoseschemesattracts the higherincome groups more thansmallsavers. The investment avenues provided by the post office are generallymarketable as they are saving media. The major instrument of post office schemesenjoytaxbenefitssuch as exemption of investment contribution or interestincomefromtax or both up to certain limits. Thesesavingschemes come at atrazine ratedwith nomination facilities and are transferable to any post office acrossIndia. Indianfamilies are known for theirsaving habits right fromhistoricalperiod. Indianhouseholdfamilies are characterised as quick saversant the same time they are riskaverters. Over, the yearsthere have been a shift experienced in the householdsaving and investment pattern. Householdsaving and investments are major contributors to the India " s GDP (Gross DomesticProducts) i.e., 23.60 per cent and thishouseholdsaving and investment contribution of the Nation " s GDP has rose 8.1 per cent in 2016-17. In recentyearsit has been observedthathouseholdsaving in banks, shares, debentures and in mutualfunds have increased and theirsaving in form of currency, provident funds has reduced .Presently in India, there are variousinvestmentschemes and opportunities are available for an individual to theirsavings and theycanchoose the appropriateinvestmentschemes, which suit hisneeds. There are different types of opportunitiesprovided by manyfinancial institutions like commercial and co-operativebanks, India post, Life Insurance Corporation, public limitedcompanies etc. Among all the above institutions, Post Office Savings Bank schemesplay a vital role. It providesnumerousbenefits to the investors. Post office savingbankis the largestsavings institution in the country. Withaview to mobilizingsavings of people withrelativelysmallincome and circulating in them a spirit of thrift and savings, the central Government has endeavoured to make the National SavingsMovementpopular by offeringhighreturnsthanthosegiven by scheduledbanks. There are a number of attractive schemes, welldesigned to meet the individualrequirements of differentinvestors. Taxsavingfeatures of thoseschemesattracts the higherincome groups more thansmallsavers. The investment avenues provided by the post offices are generallymarketable as they are a saving media. The major instruments of post office schemesenjoytaxbenefitssuch as exemption of investment contribution or interestincomefromtax or both up to certain limits.