Perception of Rural Households Towards Availability of Cooperative Banking Services in Northern States of India

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to measure the perception of rural households towards the availability of cooperative banking services.

Design/methodology/approach: To accomplish the objectives of the study, the primary data were collected from 237 beneficiaries of cooperatives banks functioning in three northern states of India, i.e., J&K, Himachal Pradesh, and Punjab using purposive sampling. The data were collected during the month January to July 2017. Statistical techniques like EFA, CFA and One-way ANOVA were applied for scale validation and data analysis.

Findings: The results of the study revealed that beneficiaries with different demographic profiles differ significantly in their perceptions with regard to availability of banking services in northern states of India.

Originality/Value: The study makes contribution towards financial inclusion literature and fulfils the research gap to some extent by analysing the perception of rural households towards the availability of banking services in northern states of India. The present study can also provide guiding principles to policymakers and other stakeholders of cooperative banks to formulate tactical policies which can helps them in providing pecuniary services to rural and urban households equally at the national and intercontinental level.