Locker rules: Banks urge customers to get stamp papers to avoid delay

Stamp papers may turn out to be the biggest problem for customers signing the latest agreement for bank lockers, as directed by RBI.

RBI recently instructed all banks to execute a fresh locker agreement with customers, the deadline for which has been set on December 31. This agreement has to be executed by all bank locker-holders, irrespective of any of them having already executed a similar locker agreement on stamp papers last year, following an earlier circular issued by RBI in October 2022.

The notifications issued by different banks pointed out that as desired by RBI, banks-and not customers-would have to procure the stamp papers, worth Rs 10, for the agreement. But several branches claimed they found it difficult to get hold of stamp papers in bulk.

An SBI branch manager told, “We are trying to arrange for the stamp papers but it is difficult to get so many together. We had to buy it in black. Now, we are requesting our customers if they can procure the stamp papers themselves because it is easier to get them in ones and twos instead of getting 50 or 100 of them at one go. Otherwise, the entire process might be delayed,” he added.