The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is set to initiate a focused two-month campaign starting January 1 to tackle a mounting pile of unresolved customer complaints within its integrated ombudsman framework. RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra announced the drive, aiming to clear all grievances that have been pending for more than a month, and called on banks and other regulated entities to prioritize customer service and cooperate fully.
Addressing the Rising Tide of Complaints
Governor Malhotra highlighted that despite a "large number of measures" to enhance customer service—such as simplified Re-KYC processes, financial inclusion initiatives, and the "Aapki Poonji, Aapka Adhikar" campaign—the pendency at the RBI Ombudsman has increased in recent months. This surge is directly linked to a significant rise in the volume of complaints received. "As a result of, inter alia, receipt of a large number of grievances, pendency with the RBI Ombudsman has increased," Malhotra stated.
He emphasized that while the RBI's services are fully digitized and disposal summaries are published monthly, with over 99.8% of applications resolved within stipulated timelines, the sheer number of new complaints has created a backlog. The upcoming January-February campaign will specifically target all cases pending for more than 30 days.
By the Numbers: A Sharp Increase in Grievances
The latest annual report from the ombudsman reveals the scale of the challenge. The centralized receipt and processing centre witnessed an 18.83% year-on-year increase, receiving 9,11,384 complaints in FY 2024-25. During the same period, it disposed of 9,04,314 complaints, including those carried forward from the previous year.
A deeper look at the disposal data shows:
- 7,84,176 complaints (85.2%) were closed as 'non-maintainable' under the rules of the RBI-Integrated Ombudsman Scheme 2021.
- 1,20,138 cases were escalated to ombudsman offices or consumer education and protection cells for further examination.
Email continues to be the dominant channel for filing complaints, accounting for 93.18% of all submissions in the last fiscal year, while the share of physical letters has continued to decline.
Reinforcing Customer-Centricity in Finance
The central bank's special drive is a direct response to the dual trends of rising complaint volumes and increasing pendency. By launching this focused campaign, the RBI aims to not only reduce the existing backlog but also reinforce the principle of timely grievance redressal as a core standard for the entire financial sector.
Governor Malhotra's call for regulated institutions to "keep customers central in their policies and operations" underscores a broader regulatory push for enhanced consumer protection and service quality. This initiative signals the RBI's proactive stance in ensuring that the efficiency of its grievance redressal mechanisms keeps pace with the growing demand from India's vast banking and financial services customer base.
