The Service Area Approach (SAA) was a scheme launched by the RBI in 1989 for an orderly development of the rural areas with the of the country. Under the SAA, all rural and semi-urban branches of banks were allocated specific villages, generally in geographical difficult areas, the overall development and the credit needs of which were to be taken care of by the respective branches. The concerned bank should meet the banking needs of the service area by creating link between bank credit- production and productivity and income expansion.
