Nirmala Sitharaman acts on MP Kota Poojary’s plea, orders hiring of local language speakers in banks

Daijiworld Media Network – Udupi

Udupi, Nov 8: In a significant move aimed at improving rural banking accessibility, union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman has directed that only local language speakers be appointed as employees in banks, responding to a formal appeal made by Udupi–Chikkamagaluru MP Kota Srinivas Poojary.

For years, residents in states such as Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and Andhra Pradesh have voiced concern over the recruitment of non-local language speakers — particularly those fluent only in Hindi or other northern languages — to branches of nationalised banks in the South. Locals argued that the practice created communication barriers and inconvenienced customers in day-to-day transactions.

Raising the issue with the Centre, MP Kota Srinivas Poojary had wri