The Department of Post will collaborate with leading banks -- IDBI, HSBC and ICICI Bank-- to provide cards (on the line of credit cards) to rural people in order to facilitate non-cash transactions for purchase of products  and services.

The card will come with pre-determined amount in rupees and could be operated at merchant locations, ATMs and designated post offices subject to approval by the Reserve Bank of India.

Disclosing his Department's 100-day agenda, Telecom and IT Minister Kapil Sibal today said his ministry will offer 'White label Pre-paid Cards' to the rural people.

The objective of launching this card is to leverage cash handling expertise and the network of India Post in order to facilitate non-cash based transactions for purchase of products and services at retail outlets across the country and to earn revenue through value added service.

Further, the department during the current fiscal year will introduce pre-paid parcel boxes for domestic parcels for 1 kg, 2.5 kg and 5 kg. The boxes will be sold through more than 800 post offices across the country.

During the current fiscal year, the department will also provided through 30 more post offices.

The Government will complete the up-gradation of 15 Speed Post centres by March 31, 2011. Three exclusive parcel booking centre are being set-up at Mumbai, Delhi and Bangalore.

Further, the Department will also open 13 parcel post centres with facilities to book, process and deliver parcels at 13 places like Hyderabad, Delhi, Bangalore, Mumbai, Chennai and Gangtok.

Besides, during the next 100 days, the Department proposes to finalise the selection of vendors for the IT solutions which includes Customer Interaction Management Solution, Mail operations solutions, Banking Solutions, Postal Life Insurance Solution, Enterprise-wide Human Resource Management Solution and Finance & Accounts Solution and Change Management.

The project is phased over the financial years 2010-11, 2011-12 and 2012-13.

Sibal added the Government has computerised more than 14,600 post offices till date and rest 9,600 post offices will be done by March 31, 2011.

Last year, the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs held its meeting in August and approved the 'IT Modernisation Project' with an total outlay of Rs 1,877.2 crore.