Mumbai: The volume of complaints received under the Reserve Bank of India’s ombudsman schemes and consumer education and protection cells stood at 4,18,184 in 2021-22, an increase of 9.39 per cent compared to the previous year.
In the fiscal year ended March 31, 2021, close to 3,82,292 complaints were received.
Of the total complaints received in 2021-22, about 42 per cent were related to the digital modes of payment and transactions, according to the annual report of Ombudsman Schemes, 2021-22, released by the RBI on Wednesday.
Reserve Bank – Integrated Ombudsman Scheme (RB-IOS) was launched on November 12, 2021. The three erstwhile ombudsman schemes of RBI – the Banking Ombudsman Scheme, 2006; the Ombudsman Scheme for Non-Banking Financial Companies, 2018; and the Ombudsman Scheme for Digital Transactions, 2019 were integrated with RB-IOS with effect from November 12, 2021.
Of the total complaints received in the previous fiscal, 3,04,496 were handled by the 22 Offices of RBI Ombudsman (ORBIOs), including the complaints received under the three erstwhile Ombudsman Schemes till November 11, 2021, the annual report showed.
The rate of disposal of complaints by RBIOs improved to 97.97 per cent in 2021-22 from 96.59 per cent in 2020-21. Majority (63.63 per cent) of the maintainable complaints were resolved through mutual settlement or conciliation or mediation, it said.
During the fiscal 2022-23, the RBI said it will review the guidelines on ‘Strengthening of grievance redress framework for banks’ issued in January 2021. It will also extend the RBI–IOS, 2021 and Internal Ombudsman Scheme to more regulated entities that are not covered presently. —Agencies

KR Desk