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REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL (RFP)
FOR ENGAGEMENT OF CORPORATE
BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT
FOR PROVIDING FINANCIAL INCLUSION
BANKING SERVICES
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BID DETAILS IN BRIEF
Sl.
No.
Description Details
1. RFP No. and Date
RFP
No.
TNGB / FI / 01 /2021
-
2.
Brief Description of the RFP
Request for proposal for engagement of
Corporate Business Correspondent
A
gency
3.
Bank’s Address for Communication
and Submission of Tender
Financial Inclusion Department,
Tamil Nadu Grama Bank Head office
Annex, 27/1, Thirunagar, Yercaud
Main
Road, Hasthampatti, Salem-636007
Email : [email protected]
4. Date of Issue 04.06.2021
5.
Last Date of Submission of Queries
14.06.2021
6.
Last Date of Submission of Bids 28.06.2021 upto 11.00AM
7.
Date
and
time
of
Opening
of
Part
A
-
Technical
Bid.
28.06.2021 upto 11.30AM
8.
Date
and
time
opening
of
Part
-
B
Commercial Bid
Will be intimated at a later date.
9. Application Fees (Not Refundable) Rs.11,800/-
(Rs 10,000/- Application Fee Plus
18%GST )
10. Earnest Money Deposit(Refundable)
Rs.10,00,000/- (Rupees Ten Lakhs only)
This document can be downloaded from Bank’s website www.tamilnadugramabank.co.in In
that event, the bidders should pay the Application Fee for tender document by means of DD
drawn on any scheduled commercial Bank for the above amount in favour of Tamil Nadu
Grama Bank, payable at Salem and submit the same along with the Bid document.
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DISCLAIMER
The information contained in this Request for Proposal (“RFP”) document or
information provided subsequently to bidders or applicants whether verbally or in
documentary form by or on behalf of Tamil Nadu Grama Bank (or Bank), is provided
to the bidder(s) on the terms and conditions set out in this RFP document and all other
terms and conditions subject to which such information is provided. This RFP
document is not an agreement and is not an offer or invitation by Tamil Nadu Grama
Bank to any parties other than the applicants who are qualified to submit the bids
(hereinafter individually and collectively referred to as “Bidder” or “Bidders”
respectively). The purpose of this RFP is to provide the Bidders with information to
assist the formulation of their proposals. This RFP does not claim to contain all the
information each Bidder requires. Each Bidder may conduct its own independent
investigations and analysis and is free to check the accuracy, reliability and
completeness of the information in this RFP. Tamil Nadu Grama Bank makes no
representation or warranty and shall incur no liability under any law, statute, rules or
regulations as to the accuracy, reliability or completeness of this RFP. The information
contained in the RFP document is selective and is subject to updating, expansion,
revision and amendment. It does not purport to contain all the information that a Bidder
requires. Tamil Nadu Grama Bank does not undertake to provide any Bidder with
access to any additional information or to update the information in the RFP document
or to correct any inaccuracies therein, which may become apparent.
Tamil Nadu Grama Bank reserves the right of discretion to change, modify, add to or
alter any or all of the provisions of this RFP and/or the bidding process, without
assigning any reasons whatsoever. Such change will be published on the Bank's
Website www.tamilnadugrmabank,co.in and it will become part and parcel of RFP.
Tamil Nadu Grama Bank in its absolute discretion, but without being under any
obligation to do so, update, amend or supplement the information in this RFP. Tamil
Nadu Grama Bank reserves the right to reject any or all the Request for Proposals
received in response to this RFP document at any stage without assigning any reason
whatsoever. The decision of Tamil Nadu Grama Bank shall be final, conclusive and
binding on all the parties.
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Contents
1. ABOUT TAMIL NADU GRAMA BANK:............................................................................................... 8
2. ABOUT THE RFP: .............................................................................................................................. 8
3. DEFINITIONS: ..................................................................................................................................... 8
4. PRE-QUALIFICATION/ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA FOR BIDDERS: ..................................................... 9
5. REQUIREMENT DETAILS: .............................................................................................................. 11
6. RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE BIDDER: ........................................................................................... 12
7. COMPLIANCE REQUIREMENTS: ................................................................................................. 13
8. TECHNICAL DELIVERABLES: ...................................................................................................... 15
9. SCOPE OF BASIC BANKING PRODUCTS & SERVICES TO BE OFFERED: .............................. 15
10. FUNCTIONAL REQUIREMENTS: .................................................................................................... 15
11. ENROLLMENT OF CUSTOMERS: .................................................................................................. 16
12. ACCOUNT OPENING/PRODUCT REGISTRATION AND ACTIVATION: ...................................... 16
13. ELIGIBLE ENTITIES AND GENERAL GUIDELINES: ..................................................................... 18
14. REMITTANCE SERVICES: .............................................................................................................. 18
15. OTHER PRODUCTS AND SERVICES: ........................................................................................... 18
16. STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURE (SOP) FOR BC:............................................................. 18
17. MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEM: ..................................................................................... 18
18. REVIEW AND MONITORING MECHANISM: .................................................................................. 18
19. BID PROCESS: ................................................................................................................................ 19
20. AMENDMENT TO BIDDING DOCUMENT: ...................................................................................... 19
21. BID SYSTEM OFFER: ...................................................................................................................... 19
22. PREPARATION OF BIDS: ................................................................................................................ 20
23. PART A- TECHNICAL PROPOSAL: ................................................................................................ 20
24. PART B-COMMERCIAL BID (INDICATIVE): ................................................................................... 21
25. APPLICATION MONEY: ................................................................................................................... 22
26. EARNEST MONEY DEPOSIT (EMD): ............................................................................................. 22
27. DOCUMENTATION: ......................................................................................................................... 22
28. COSTS & CURRENCY: .................................................................................................................... 22
29. ERASURES OR ALTERATIONS: ..................................................................................................... 23
30. ASSUMPTIONS/PRESUMPTIONS/MODIFICATIONS: ................................................................... 23
31. SUBMISSION OF BIDS: ................................................................................................................... 23
32. BID OPENING: .................................................................................................................................. 23
33. SELECTION OF BIDDER ................................................................................................................. 24
34. VALIDITY OF BIDS: .......................................................................................................................... 26
35. BANK’ S RIGHT TO ACCEPT ANY BID AND TO REJECT ANY OR ALL BIDS: ........................... 26
36. PERFORMANCE GUARANTEE: .................................................................................................... 27
37. AWARDING OF CONTRACT: .......................................................................................................... 27
38. REPRESENTATIONS AND WARRANTIES:.................................................................................... 28
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39. COMPLIANCE WITH LAWS: ............................................................................................................ 29
40. CANCELLATION OF THE ORDER AND TERMINATION OF CONTRACT: .................................. 30
41. INDEMNITY: ...................................................................................................................................... 30
42. INSPECTION OF RECORDS: .......................................................................................................... 31
43. ASSIGNMENT: .................................................................................................................................. 31
44. PUBLICITY: ....................................................................................................................................... 32
45. INSURANCE: .................................................................................................................................... 32
46. CONFIDENTIALITY AND NON-DISCLOSURE ............................................................................... 32
47. CORRUPT AND FRAUDULENT PRACTICES ................................................................................ 32
48. MODIFICATION/CANCELLATION OF RFP: ................................................................................. 33
49. HUMAN RESOURCE REQUIREMENT: .......................................................................................... 33
50. LEGAL DISPUTES AND JURISDICTION OF THE COURT: ........................................................... 34
51. SERVICE AGREEMENT AND PENALTIES: ............................................................................... 35
52. TIME SCHEDULE: ............................................................................................................................ 36
53. PERIOD OF CONTRACT: ................................................................................................................ 37
54. REVIEW OF SERVICES: .................................................................................................................. 37
55. PAYMENT TERMS: .......................................................................................................................... 38
56. FORCE MAJEURE: .......................................................................................................................... 38
57. COMPLIANCE WITH STATUTORY AND REGULATORY PROVISIONS: ..................................... 39
58. SOCIAL MEDIA POLICY: ................................................................................................................. 39
59. TAXES AND DUTIES: ....................................................................................................................... 39
60. TERMS AND CONDITIONS FOR THE PROPOSAL: ...................................................................... 40
61. CERTIFICATE BY THE BIDDER: ..................................................................................................... 41
62. LIABILITIES OF THE BANK: ............................................................................................................ 42
63. PROPOSAL FORMAT: ..................................................................................................................... 42
64. OWNERSHIP: ................................................................................................................................... 42
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APPENDIX
I
Number of locations Region wise to be covered by the
business correspondent in Tamil Nadu
II Role of Service Provider / Bank
III Scope of basic banking products and services to be offered
IV
Entities eligible to be appointed as BC/BCA and general guidelines
to be followed by BC while appointing BCA
V
Standard operating procedure for BC
ANNEXURES
I
Bidders profile
II Profile of BC proposed for the Project
III Agencies to whom FI solutions have been offered
IV Financial position of the bidder
V
Confirmation of soft copy
VI Bidder’s undertaking letter
VII Compliance statement
VIII Technical Evaluation Criteria
IX
Commercial bid – Undertaking letter
X
Commercial Bid – Indicative Price Bid
XI
Authorization letter format
XII Proforma of bank guarantee for contract performance
XIII
Format for sending pre-bid queries
XIV Non-disclosure agreement
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ABBREVIATIO NS USED IN THE DOCUMENTS
BIDDER* BIDDER- SERVICE PROVIDER(SP) – VENDOR- CORPORATE BC- BC
BC BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT
BCA BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT AGENT
BCO BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT OUTLET – HYBRID (BOTH KIOSK AND MOBILE)
CBS CORE BANKING SYSTEM
CSP CUSTOMER SERVICE PROVIDER
DBT DIRECT BENEFIT TRANSFER
DFS DEPARTMENT OF FINANCIAL SERVICES
EBT ELECTRONIC BENEFIT TRANSFER
EMD EARNEST MONEY DEPOSIT
FI FINANCIAL INCLUSION
GOI GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
IBA INDIAN BANKS’ ASSOCIATION
ICT INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY
IDRBT
INSTITUTE FOR DEVELOPMENT AND RESEARCH IN BANKING
TECHNOLOGY
ITIL
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY INFRASTRUCTURE LIBRARY
KYC KNOW YOUR CUSTOMER
MIS MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEM
NABARD NATIONAL BANK FOR AGRICULATURE AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT
NBFC
NON-BANKING FINANCIAL COMPANY
NGO NON-GOVERNMENT ORGANISATION
NPA NON PERFORMING ASSETS
NPCI NATIONAL PAYMENT CORPORATION OF INDIA
NREGP NATIONAL RURAL EMPLOYMENT GENERATION PROGRAMME
RBI RESERVE BANK OF INDIA
RFP REQEUST FOR PROPOSAL
SHG SELF HELP GROUP
TAB TABLET TO BE USED IN KIOSK/MOBILE BC
UID UNIQUE IDENTITY
UIDAI UNIQUE IDENTIFICATION AUTHORITY OF INDIA
*BIDDER/ SERVICE PROVIDER/VENDOR/CORPORATE BC/BC MENTIONED
IN THE DOCUMENTS ARE ALL ONE AND THE SAME.
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1. ABOUT TAMIL NADU GRAMA BANK:
Tamil Nadu Grama Bank is a Regional Rural Bank (hereinafter referred to as
Bank), having its Head office at 6, Yercaud Main Road, Hasthampatti, Salem 636
007.
The Bank is operating in all Districts of Tamil Nadu except Chennai. The Bank is
having a network of 640 branches as on 31st March 2021.
2. ABOUT THE RFP:
In the context of Financial Inclusion, Tamil Nadu Grama Bank envisages
extension of Banking & Financial Services to under banked & unbanked areas
through ICT based “branchless banking” model, where integrated Micro ATM
/Tab/Tablet devices would be used by Business Correspondents to deliver
financial and banking services. Bank has already implemented ICT based solution
in allotted Sub Service Areas (SSAs) and in other areas as decided by the Bank.
The technology architecture supporting this strategy involves a combination of
various technologies like Field BCs/ Fixed Point BC , contact / contact- less cards,
biometric identification and authentication, etc. These technologies will
support online transactions and operations.
The proposed RFP has been floated with the objective of increasing the reach of
banking and financial services to the underprivileged, particularly in unbanked
and under- banked areas.
The eligibility criteria, the evaluation process and other terms and conditions are
set out in this RFP. Bank will enter into contract with the selected Service Provider
(SP) on such terms and conditions as contained in this RFP. The selected SP will
act on behalf of the Bank in respect of the specified services and will not be
eligible to claim any benefits except for the fee or commission as may be agreed.
The SP shall not use the trade mark, logo or any proprietary right of the Bank
without it’s written consent.
3. DEFINITIONS:
Words/phrases used in this Request for Proposal shall have the meanings
assigned to them as hereunder unless used in a context totally contrary:
a) “Bank” means TAMIL NADU GRAMA BANK.
b) “Bidder” means any company/entity who bids for offering services
as a Business Correspondent (BC) for the Bank pursuant to the
terms of this RFP.
c) “Bid” means the offer made by the Bidder in response to this
RFP.
d) “Corporate Business Correspondent” (CBC) or “Service
Provider (SP)” means any person/entity who is eligible to act as
BC for the banks under the terms hereof for providing services
described in the RFP.
e) “BCA” is Business correspondent Agent /person engaged
by CBC for operating in the field.
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f) “Business Correspondent Agreement” means the agreement to be
executed between the Bank and the Service Provider containing
the terms and conditions on which the Services will be provided.
g) “Eligibility Criteria” means the criteria required to be satisfied
by the Bidder in order to bid so as to be engaged as a Service
Provider, which is as per the guidelines of RBI, more particularly
described in this RFP.
h) “Area of operation” means geographic area allocated like
villages, wards in the towns or cities, etc. It is expected that each BCA
will cater about 1500 households. Provided however, that in case,
more than one BCA is allotted for any gram Panchayat on account of
Sub Service Area approach, their respective areas would be
specifically defined. Provided further that in case another BC already
exists in a village and the BC who will be allotted the work under this
RFP may also be allowed to work in the same village concurrently.
i) “RFP” means this Request for Proposal issued by the Bank.
j) “Services” means the services to be provided by the BC/SP pursuant
to the terms of the RFP/Service Agreement.
k) “Back end System” means Banks Core Banking Solution
l) “Front end System” means Tab/Tablet system installed/working at
BC points
m) “Financial inclusion Plan” means providing banking services to the
financially excluded segment as well as to provide banking and
financial services using innovative channels.
n) “Solution” means the various hardware & peripherals (
including Android based Tab/Tablet) used by the BC for
implementation of the Business Correspondent Services
4. PRE-QUALIFICATION/ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA FOR BIDDERS:
4.1 . A vendor submitting the proposal in response to this RFP shall hereinafter be
referred to as ‘Bidder’ and the solution for implementation of Business
Correspondent Services – through Micro ATM/ HHD/ Tab in Tamil Nadu
Grama Bank shall hereinafter be referred as “Solution”.
4.2 . Interested Bidders, who will provide Corporate Business Correspondent
services in the Bank and meeting the Eligibility Criteria as below may
respond :
No. Criteria Documents to be submitted
1.
Bidder should be a registered
company in India under
Companies Act 1956 or 2013 and
should have been in operation for
at least Three years as on the
date of RFP.
Copy of Certificate of Incorporation &
Certificate of Commencement of
Business in case of Public Limited
Company or Certificate of Incorporation
in case of Private Limited Company,
issued by the Registrar of Companies.
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2.
The bidder should have been a
BC/SP for providing FI solution
(such as EBT, DBT, Aadhaar
based Payment etc.) for
Scheduled Commercial Bank /
Regional Rural Banks Sponsored
by Public Sector Bank in India for
a minimum period of 3 years
The Kiosk /BC solution should
have been implemented in at least
in 500 locations in India.
Supported by documentary evidence
such as purchase order/ copies of the
Service Contracts wherever entered.
Letter from the concerned organization
confirming successful implementation of
FI project with them is to be submitted
with following details:
Name of the client
Number of Locations
Type of Model
Scope of Project
Name of the person who can be referred
to from Clients’ side, with Name,
Designation, Postal Address, Phone
and Fax numbers, E-Mail IDs, etc.,
The bank reserves the right to inspect
such installations while evaluating the
Technical Bid.
4. Bidder or its wholly owned
Parent Company should have
maintained Positive Net Worth
during the last Four financial
years, i.e. 2017-18, 2018-19 and
2019-20, (All audited) and PBS for
2020-21
Audited Financial statements to
be submitted for Three years. Self-
certified copy of financial statement for
2020-21, if not audited.
5.
Annual turnover should not be
less than Rs. 5 (Five) crores in the
last financial year as per audited
financial statement.
Audited Financial statements to be
submitted for FY 2019-20 and Self
certified copy of financial statement for
2020-21, if not audited.
6.
The bidder should have
strong organizational strength to
undertake and execute large
projects including hardware,
networking, disaster recovery,
system integration,
implementation, etc. System
integration should be based on
industry’s best practices.
Documentary proof - Satisfactory
certificate from the present Banker where
the vendor is extending the BC services.
7. Bidder should also have internal
control and audit measures in
place.
Copy of latest Audit Report.
8. Bidder should not have been
blacklisted by any PSU Bank /
IBA/ RBI /NPCI /UIDAI/ IDRBT /
NABARD
Notarized Affidavit.
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9.
Neither the bidder nor its
promoters and Directors should be
defaulters to any financial
institution. The bidder should not
have been reported against by
any Public Sector Bank to Indian
Banks’ Association for any
malpractice, fraud, poor service,
etc.
Auditor’s Certificate & Notarized
Affidavit
Note: - In the event of bidder being a company formed as a result of demerger,
amalgamation, reconstruction etc., the services rendered by its predecessor in
accordance with aforesaid criteria shall be reckoned and taken into consideration for
determining the eligibility of bidder and it shall be deemed that services rendered by
predecessor of such bidder were rendered by bidder itself and the bidder shall be
deemed to be in existence from the date of incorporation of its predecessor.
In addition, the prospective bidders who comply with the following criteria are only
eligible to bid:
a) The bidder will be single point of contact to provide the solution to the
Bank.
b) The bidder must be fully aware of the RBI, IDRBT, Government of
India, UIDAI etc. guidelines with regard to Financial Inclusion.
c) The bidder should have proven capability to provide services
mentioned in this RFP. Successful implementation of a related project
( such as delivery of financial services / products / Biometric
solutions, Card Based solutions etc.) with a Bank and a copy
of such agreement should be enclosed.
d) The Bidder should ensure that the FIELD BC works exclusively for the
Bank.
5. REQUIREMENT DETAILS:
5.1 Bank has provided Financial Inclusion services through Business
Correspondents in 700+ locations for the state of Tamil Nadu. This number may
be increased to around 1000 locations in future.
5.2 The scope of the current project, being one of the ICT - BC based banking
channels, may extend to all or some of the envisaged villages depending on
the performance. Bank may extend services to other areas as well under this
project. The aforesaid figures are only indicative and the actual numbers may
vary.
5.3 The geographic locations that fall within the scope of this project can span over
rural, semi- urban, urban and metropolitan areas. The Regions wise number of
existing BCA locations is provided in Appendix I.
5.4 Micro ATM/ HHD/TAB based solution and device will be provided by the Bank.
There will be no separate solution for service at field, it will be a common
application and the TAB to be used.
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5.5 Wherever KIOSK is referred it may be read as Fixed Point wherein BC has to
work for 4 -5 hours per day & for the remaining period BCA has to work as
mobile.
5.6 Wherever HHM/Hand held machine/POS is referred, it may be read as
TAB/Micro ATM, as it will be the common device to work as Kiosk and Mobile.
6. RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE BIDDER:
6.1 Bidder shall be responsible for entire Management of Business
Correspondents such as Engagement, Monitoring, Cash Management and
covering the entire scope of this RFP.
6.2 At present Bank is having around 700 BCs. Bidder should give preference to
existing BCs for engagement.
6.3 The roles and responsibilities of the Bidder will also include those stated in
greater detail in other parts of RFP.
6.4 Bidder shall use the solution & interface provided by the bank and to provide
supporting organizational structures and skilled human resources to educate,
facilitate and deliver financial services to the targeted customers.
6.5 Bidder shall be responsible for compliance with mandatory compliance
requirements indicated in the section “Compliance Requirements” and at
various specific requirements indicated in other parts of the RFP;
6.6 Indemnifying the bank of risks indicated in the section “Indemnity” and
specific requirements indicated in other parts of the RFP.
6.7 Bidder shall act as the single point of contact for the Bank. Under no
circumstance the bidder should sub-contract the work entrusted to them.
6.8 Bidder shall be responsible to resolve all issues that may arise from the BC
Management and monitoring.
6.9 Bidder shall also man and manage all the incidental activities related to the
scope of the RFP.
6.10 The details of the BCs along with the photograph will be placed in Bank’s WEB
portal.
6.11 Bank will enter into a detailed agreement with the Bidder clearly defining the
roles and responsibilities and the terms of engagement for the
infrastructural support and services extended to the bank as per the
format prescribed by the Bank.
6.12 Render banking and financial services as entrusted by the Bank under
BC model at designated locations to all the customers of Tamil Nadu Grama
Bank, duly complying with Bank, RBI, IDRBT,IBA, NPCI,UIDAI,NABARD,
GOI, State Govt. guidelines.
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6.13 Bidder will have to qualify and render financial / banking services under BC
model duly meeting regulatory requirements stipulated by RBI for
rendering specified banking & financial services and those entrusted by the
bank from time-to-time.
6.14 Bidder shall provide well trained personnel and extend necessary
mentoring and operational support to the intermediary network of agents,
etc.
6.15 Bidder shall confirm that every person deployed by them on the project has
been vetted through third- party background check prior to their engagement.
Reference from two respectable persons of that area known to the bank should
be submitted to the bank prior to their engagement.
6.16 Bidder shall confirm that every person deployed by them on the project to
submit Police Verification Certificate prior to their engagement.
6.17 Bidder shall manage the activities of its personnel or others engaged in the
project etc. and will be accountable for all the personnel deployed/engaged in
the project.
6.18 . In case the performance of the Business Correspondents, their agents
or personnel engaged in the project is not satisfactory or is detrimental to the
interests of the Bank, the Bidder shall have to replace the said person within
15 days or any such time limits stipulated by the Bank. Failing which, Bank
shall impose Rs.10,000/- per case per month
6.19 No right to employment in the Bank shall accrue or arise, by virtue of
engagement of employees, agents etc. of the bidder for any assignment under
this project.
6.20 Bidder will exercise due diligence and only engage persons
having established identity, integrity, requisite qualifications &
skills and deployment experience for all critical activities.
6.21 Bidder will involve designated officials of the Bank in selection process of BC
agents.
6.22 Cash Management is the sole Responsibility of CBC/BC.
6.23 Bidder to extend all of the outsourced banking & financial services
by deploying such personnel that have high integrity and meet
the qualifications and other criteria stipulated by the Reserve Bank of India,
Government or the Bank from time to time.
7. COMPLIANCE REQUIREMENTS:
7.1 The entire activity under this solution would be guided by and conform to
policies & guidelines of the Bank, GOI, RBI, NABARD, NPCI, UIDAI,
IDRBT, IBA, State Govt.
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7.2 Service management process based- on ITIL standards.( Information
Technology Infrastructure Library)
7.3 Bidder who deploys for rendering outsourced banking/financial
services shall conform to bank/RBI’s guidelines.
7.4 The business practices, processes adopted for rendering
services, maintenance of records, accounting norms & procedures etc
for Banking and Financial services shall conform to regulatory, legal
and bank’s policies and guidelines.
7.5 Customers enrolled under the project shall meet “Know Your Customer”
norms as stipulated by the Bank.
7.6 Accounts, transactions, services, controls, etc related to banking
and financial services should integrate with Bank’s Core- Banking system.
7.7 The solution should conform to and integrate with UIDAI/NPCI’s directions on
Financial Inclusion / Direct Benefit Transfer.
7.8 Bidder should ensure that in addition to security features- as stipulated by the
Bank from time to time- deployed in the technology, controls and
operational procedures should ensure protection of the bank from loss,
disclosure or frauds.
7.9 Bidder shall indemnify the Bank from transaction risk (from system
error, human error, negligence and mismanagement) and fraud risk
(loss to earnings or capital due to intentional deception by employees,
customers, agents, external entities, etc.).
7.10 Bidder shall indemnify the Bank and hold the bank harmless against loss or
liability, claims actions or proceedings if any, that may arise through the
action of its employees, agents etc.
7.11 Bidder shall assist the Bank in identifying potential risks in the solution,
remedy any of the identified risks, develop strategies to measure, monitor
and mitigate those risks and implement new controls.
7.12 Bidder shall maintain adequate documentation, records, audit trails, etc and
cooperate with the RBI/Bank’ s internal audit teams, regulatory authorities
and third- party external auditors for conducting periodical audit and arrange
for necessary access to relevant information / assets under the control of the
bidder.
7.13 Financial Exposures & Performance risks from third- party service
providers under the project would be regulated and mitigated through
Financial Guarantees, Collateral Securities, etc based on risk perception of
the Bank.
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8. TECHNICAL DELIVERABLES:
8.1 The Bidder shall ensure that the BC location /Fixed Point is located within the
Geographical area allotted to the concerned BCA and is in a prominent
place, acceptable to the Bank and with requisite furniture & fixtures for BCA
and customers in case of Fixed Point BC location. The bidder shall also
provide training and operational support for software upgradation training with
the help of Technical Service Provider
8.2 Network connectivity, consumables, Bank approved overcoat, Identity Card,
Cab, Stationery etc. applicable to BCs would be to the cost of the Bidder.
8.3 Bank may at its discretion close or shift any location based on the needs.
8.4 Spare devices will be kept at Bank’s Regional Offices. Bidder shall make own
logistics arrangements for replacement of faulty devices
8.5 Bidder shall ensure that the service is rendered in a manner that
the agents would encourage & promote the customers to use Bank’s services.
8.6 Bidder shall ensure that faulty equipment should be replaced within
a maximum period of 48 hours of reporting.
8.7 The Bidder also ensure that non-login/ Inactive for more than 7 days will be
reported to Bank through Coordinator/ Supervisor/ Area Manager to
respective Regional Office of the Bank and immediate replacement to be
done.
8.8 Role of Service Provider / Bank is given in Appendix II
9. SCOPE OF BASIC BANKING PRODUCTS & SERVICES TO BE OFFERED:
The Service Provider would be required to provide the services, facilities,
infrastructure, training, etc. The detailed scope of basic banking products
and services to be offered are mentioned under Appendix III.
10. FUNCTIONAL REQUIREMENTS:
10.1 The authentication of transactions would be through matching the
biometrics/fresh sample of fingerprint with UIDAI server
10.2 The customers should be able to perform selected banking transactions
through authorized representatives of the Bidder. Enabled with
interconnectivity, these representatives of the Bidder will extend banking
& financial services on behalf of the Bank to its customers at
their (customers’) respective locations/ villages/habitats during the time
window and at the frequency stipulated by the Bank.
10.3 The entities deployed by the Bidder as BCAs for extending banking and
financial services on behalf of the bank shall conform to
Bank/RBI/UIDAI/IDRBT/NABARD/GOI/state Govt. guidelines.
10.4 The bidder shall ensure that the project has the sufficient human
resources which shall be able to support deposit taking, lending, account
management, financial literacy & advice, remittances, electronic benefit
payments/transfer, etc.
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11. ENROLLMENT OF CUSTOMERS:
11.1 Bidder shall enroll customers to various products using the same solution.
Customers may enroll themselves for several products simultaneously
or to different products at different points-in- time. The Bidder should
undertake enrollment to each of the products (as may be required by the
Bank) as per the customers’ choice and Bank’ s policy.
11.2 Every customer in the target group will have at least a savings bank account.
Other schemes & banking products would also be offered to customers of
target-group based on the policy of the bank.
11.3 Bank will entrust the process of enrollment to the Bidder. Bidder may engage
his representatives to carry out the operations duly complying with Bank’s
norm and other associated norms of GOI/RBI/UIDAI/IDRBT/IBA/legal
guidelines.
11.4 Due care and security should be accorded to all the related physical
documents.
11.5 Bidder shall also ensure that the Business Correspondent Agents are
frequently trained and kept updated with bank’ s new schemes, policies, etc
as may be required to discharge their roles and serve the target- customers.
11.6 Bidder would also ensure that required supplies of stationery and other
consumables are made available with Business Correspondent Agents for
uninterrupted operations.
11.7 Bidder may be required to enroll the customer on production of documentary
evidence/support that RBI or the Bank may prescribe duly complying with
customer due- diligence (including Know-Your-Customer requirements).
11.8 The physical documents and application form will be delivered at the
designated location of the Bank Branch within three working days.
12. ACCOUNT OPENING/PRODUCT REGISTRATION AND ACTIVATION:
12.1 General:
a) Every customer Account shall be opened in the banking system after all
the mandatory information about the applicant/customer has been
captured.
b) However the account/scheme/product/service will be activated only after
fulfilling the stipulations given by the Bank.
c) The scheme/product or service may require authorization by Bank’ s
official before it becomes operational.
d) The personnel handling the above processes should be capable of
enforcing all the controls required by the Bank.
12.2 Customer Operations:
a) The customers will carry out all the banking transactions through the BCA
b) Mode of transactions is online.
c) A customer may have multiple accounts/services linked to the same.
d) The services availed by the customers may vary.
e) Bank may extend additional Products/services in future to be rolled out in
P a g e 17 | 42
BC channel.
f) Bidder would obtain application/enrollment forms for other permitted
schemes like insurance etc, or any other product/services introduced by the
Bank from time to time, as & when they are offered by the Bank/subscribed
by the customers.
12.3 Customer Account Operations:
a) Customers who wish to receive Banking & Financial services shall
approach the authorized representative of the Bidder, the BCA. Customer
will carry out AEPS, RuPay card based financial & Non- Financial
transactions both on us and off us.
b) The identity of the customers has to be ensured by the BCA.
c) BCA may verify additional details of the customer if stipulated by the Bank.
d) Customer is permitted to transact in online mode only through the Micro
ATM/ Tab/Tablet at BC locations.
e) The requested transaction is put through only if the conditions stipulated by
the bank are met.
f) The successful cash transaction is concluded by payment of cash or receipt
of cash by the Bidder depending on whether the transaction is a withdrawal
or a receipt.
g) Further, each customer will be permitted only certain number of transactions
and within a maximum limit prescribed by the Bank for each category for a
given period.
h) The above details will be furnished to the Successful Bidder by the Bank.
i) Receipts will be printed for each transaction. One will be handed over to the
customer and the other will be held with the Bidder for records
j) Each transaction will have a unique reference number for the Bank and the
same would also be printed on every receipt.
k) The account holder may request for statement of account and the BCA at
the village will provide a printout of last 10 transactions together with the
outstanding balance in the desired account(s) using the front- end
equipment.
l) The receipts and statements shall be in English/vernacular language
m) BCA may assist the customer by pursuing with the Bank.
n) In case the RuPay card is lost by the account- holder, the matter shall be
reported to the BCAs, who will direct the customers to approach Bank for
issuance of duplicate card. Bank will charge applicable charges to the
customer for issuing duplicate card.
12.4 Operations at BC Outlet ( BCO):
a) Bidder will be responsible for physical custody and upkeep of the
systems/devices provided for front-end operations.
b) Bidder would also be responsible for cash and accounting of transactions;
maintenance receipts of transactions, details of exceptional transactions, etc.
c) Following registers to be maintained:
Records of customers enrolled;
Account opening forms sent to link branch;
Account opening forms pending to be sent;
Customer contact register;
Applications movement register;
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Visitors/Bank officials visit register.
List of Do’ s and Don’ts for customers to be displayed.
Complaints register.
13. ELIGIBLE ENTITIES AND GENERAL GUIDELINES:
Entities eligible to be appointed as BCAs and general guidelines to be
followed by BC while appointing BCAs is mentioned in Appendix IV.
14. REMITTANCE SERVICES:
Customer should be able to remit funds and receive funds using the front-
end system with the agent.
15. OTHER PRODUCTS AND SERVICES:
15.1 Bank would share the product brochures or other products and services that
would be extended through this channel to the successful bidder. The
responsibility of training & dissemination of product information to BCA lies
with the bidder. In future, if any new products/services are introduced the
Bank would share the operational guidelines separately.
16. STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURE (SOP) FOR BC:
16.1 The Standard operating procedure for the Business correspondents/BC
agents are mentioned under Appendix V
17. MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEM:
17.1 The Bank will provide Daily MIS received from our TSP for effective
monitoring of BC activity.
17.2 The bidder shall put in place a mechanism to the BCAs to whom the work is
intended to.
17.3 Bidder shall assist the bank in defining exceptional transactions and monitor
all such exceptional transactions
17.4 It should also be possible to centrally monitor and obtain reports on cash
movement, cash balances, cash payments, etc at each of the front- end
functionaries in consultation with the Bank and TSP.
18. REVIEW AND MONITORING MECHANISM:
18.1 Bank will evaluate the Bidder on an ongoing basis and may take a suitable
decision for continuation/ termination / expansion of contracted services
based on the Annexure VII.
18.2 The project shall conform to Bank’ s policies and would be subject to Internal
and External audits. The Bidder is required to extend all necessary co-
operations to facilitate audit process.
18.3 Bidder shall have adequate audit controls and track normal and exceptional
transactions.
18.4 Bank will utilize the services of internal or external auditors for ensuring proper
operations by Bidders.
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18.5 Bank may also arrange for a random verification of enrollment/ payments,
card-personalization, etc for better control.
19. BID PROCESS:
Clarification to RFP and Pre-Bid Queries:
19.1 The bidder should carefully examine and understand the specifications,
terms & conditions of the RFP and may seek clarifications, if required.
The bidders in all such cases should seek clarification in writing in
the same serial order as that of the RFP by mentioning the relevant page
number and clause number of the RFP as per format provided under
Annexure XIII
19.2 All communications regarding points requiring clarifications and any
doubts shall be given in writing to The Chief Manager, Tamil Nadu Grama
Bank, Head office Annex, Thiru Nagar, Hasthampatti, Salem- 636007 or an
email can be sent to [email protected] by the intending bidders before
14.06.2021
19.3 No queries will be entertained from the bidders after the above date and time.
19.4 The Bank will consolidate all the written queries and the replies for the queries
shall be made available in the Bank’s website and no individual
correspondence shall be made. The clarification of the Bank in response to
the queries raised by the bidder/s, and any other clarification/amendments
/corrigendum furnished thereof will become part and parcel of the RFP and it
will be binding on the bidders.
19.5 No oral or individual consultation will be entertained.
20. AMENDMENT TO BIDDING DOCUMENT:
20.1 At any time prior to deadline for submission of Bids, the Bank, for any reason,
whether, at its own initiative or in response to a clarification requested by
prospective bidder, may modify the bidding document, by amendment.
20.2 Notification of amendments will be made available on the Bank’s website only
and will be binding on all bidders and no separate communication will be
issued in this regard.
20.3 In order to allow prospective bidders to take the amendment into account in
preparing their bids, the Bank at its discretion, may extend the deadline for a
reasonable period as decided by the Bank for submission of Bids.
21. BID SYSTEM OFFER:
This is two bid system which has following 2 (Two) parts:
21.1 Part A-Technical Proposal: Indicating the response to the Technical
specification for Engagement of Corporate Business Correspondent for
providing Financial Inclusion Banking Services using Micro ATM /TAB in
Tamil Nadu Grama Bank.(Annexure I to VIII).
21.2 Part B- Commercial Bid (Indicative): Furnishing all relevant information as
required as per Indicative Price Bid as per Annexure- X.
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22. PREPARATION OF BIDS:
22.1 The Bid shall be typed in English language in Arial font style with font size of
12 in indelible ink and shall be signed by the Bidder or a person or persons
duly authorized to bind the Bidder to the Contract. The person or persons
signing the Bids shall affix signature in all pages of the Bids, except for un-
amended printed literature.
22.2 The two parts as stated above, should be placed in two separate
envelopes superscribed with ‘Technical Proposal’ and ‘Commercial Bid’
respectively and properly closed & sealed. Thereafter, both the envelopes
shall be placed inside another envelope and properly closed & sealed. The
final envelope should be superscribed as Request for Proposal for
Engagement of Corporate Business Correspondent for providing
Financial Inclusion Banking Services using Micro ATM / TAB in Tamil
Nadu Grama Bank in response to RFP No. TNGB / HO / FI / 01 / 2021-22”
(includes separately sealed ‘Conformity to ‘Technical Proposal’ and
‘Commercial Bid’) on the top of the envelope. All the envelopes shall bear
the name and complete postal address of the bidder as well as the
addressee, namely the The General Manager (Credit), Tamil Nadu Grama
Bank, Head Office, No.6, Yercaud Main Road, Hasthampatti, Salem 636 007.
a) All the pages of Bid including Brochures should be made in an
organized, structured, and neat manner. Brochures / leaflets etc.
should not be submitted in loose form. All the pages of the
submitted bids should be paginated with Name, Seal and
Signature of the Authorized Signatory. Bids with erasing /
overwriting / cutting without authentication may be liable for
rejection.
b) Authorization letter for signing the Bid documents duly signed by
Company’s Authorized signatory should be submitted.
c) All the envelopes shall bear the name and complete postal
address of the Bidder and authority to whom the Bid is submitted.
23. PART A- TECHNICAL PROPOSAL:
23.1 Technical Proposal should be submitted as per the format as per Annexure I
to VIII. Relevant technical details and documentation should be provided
along with Technical Proposal.
23.2 The offer may not be evaluated and may be rejected by the Bank without any
further reference in case of non-adherence to the format or partial submission
of technical information as per the format given in the offer.
23.3 In case of any contravention of technical specification detected at any stage
which is not explained to the satisfaction of the Bank, the technical
specifications elaborated in RFP shall prevail and the bidder shall be
considered as disqualified ab initio and it shall be presumed that the
commercial bid of CONTRACTOR was never opened by the bank.
23.4 The Bank shall not allow / permit changes in the technical specifications once
it is submitted.
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23.5 The Technical Proposal should be complete in all respects and contain all
information sought for, as per Annexure I to VIII.
23.6 After ensuring the above, it shall be placed inside a separate Envelope
and sealed and super scribed on the top of the cover as “PART A-
Technical Proposal for RFP No. TNGB / HO / FI / 01 / 2021-22 f o r
Engagement of Corporate Business Correspondent for providing
Financial Inclusion Banking Services”
24. PART B-COMMERCIAL BID (INDICATIVE):
24.1 Commercial Bid (Indicative Price Bid) shall be submitted as per format given
in Annexure X and other terms and conditions of RFP on prices. Any
deviations / non submission of prices as per the format given in Annexure X
shall make the bid liable for rejection.
24.2 Under no circumstances the Commercial Bid should be kept in Part A
(i. e.Technical Proposal) Cover. The placement of commercial bid in PartA
(i. e. Technical Proposal) cover will make bid liable for rejection.
24.3 Bidder must take care in filling price information in the Commercial Offer, to
ensure that there are no typographical or arithmetic errors. All fields must be
filled up correctly.
24.4 Any change in the Commercial Bid format may render the bid liable for
rejection. The Commercial Bids (Indicative) that are incomplete or conditional
are liable to be rejected.
24.5 After ensuring the above, it shall be placed inside a separate Envelope
and sealed and superscribed on the top of the cover as “PART B-
Commercial Bid for RFP No. TNGB / HO / FI / 01 / 2021-22 for
Engagement of Corporate Business Correspondent for providing
Financial Inclusion Banking Services”.
24.6 General conditions
a) The Bidder to quote in Indian Rupees only and bids in currencies
other than INR would not be considered.
b) The prices and other terms offered by Bidders must be in force for a
period of 365 days from the date of opening of the commercial bid.
c) All costs should be inclusive of all taxes, duties, charges and levies
of State or Central Governments as applicable, at the date of signing
the Agreement and subject to deduction of all statutory deductions
applicable, if any. The benefits realized by Bidder due to lower rates
duties, charges and levies shall be passed on by Bidder to Bank.
d) The Bidder has to include all costs like Travel, Lodging & Boarding,
Local Travel expenses, etc incurred during the implementation as a
part of the Commercial Bid and Bank will not bear any additional
costs on these.
e) The prices quoted by the Bidders shall include all costs such as
Taxes, Custom Duties, Levies, Cess, Insurance, etc. that need to
be incurred.
f) Terms of payment indicated in the RFP shall be final and binding on
the Bidder and no alternate terms & conditions proposed in the RFP
shall be considered.
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25. APPLICATION MONEY:
25.1 This document can be downloaded from Bank’s website. In that event,
the bidders should pay the Application Fee of Rs.11,800/- (non-
refundable) (Rs 10,000/- Plus GST) for tender document by means of
DD drawn on any Scheduled Commercial Bank in favour of Tamil Nadu
Grama Bank, payable at Salem and submit the same along with Part A –
Technical Proposal
25.2 Submission of the Application Money in other than “Part- A- Technical
Proposal” is liable to be rejected on grounds of non- payment of the
Application Money.
25.3 The Bidder shall bear all costs associated with the preparation and
submission of the Bid and Bank will not be responsible for the costs,
regardless of the conduct or outcome of the bidding process. The Bank
is not liable for any cost incurred by the Bidder in replying to this RFP. It
is also clarified that no binding relationship will exist between any of the
respondents and the Bank until the execution of the contract.
26. EARNEST MONEY DEPOSIT (EMD):
26.1 The bidder shall furnish Non interest earning Earnest Money Deposit
(EMD) of Rs.10,00, 000/- (Rupees Ten lakhs Only) by way of Demand
Draft drawn on any Scheduled Commercial Bank In India in favour of
Tamil Nadu Grama Bank, payable at Salem
26.2 Submission of EMD in other than Part A-Technical Proposal Envelope is liable
to be rejected on grounds of non-submission of EMD.
26.3 The EMD of the Bidders not qualified under Technical Proposal will be
returned within 30 days after opening the Commercial Bid of the Technically
Qualified Bidders. The EMD of Technically Qualified bidders will be returned
upon the selected bidder accepting the order and furnishing the Performance
Bank Guarantee as per Annexure XII.
26.4 The EMD may be forfeited:
a) If the bidder withdraws or amends the bid during the period of
bid validity specified in this document.
b) If the selected bidder fails to accept the purchase order within 7
days or fails to sign the contract or fails to furnish performance
guarantee in accordance with the terms of the RFP and as per
Annexure XII.
27. DOCUMENTATION:
Technical information in the form of Brochures / Manuals / CD etc. of the most
current and updated version available in English must be submitted in support of
the Technical Offer made without any additional charges to the bank. The Bank is
at liberty to reproduce all the documents and printed materials furnished by the
Bidder in relation to the RFP for its own use.
28. COSTS & CURRENCY:
The Offer must be made in Indian Rupees only as per Commercial Bid (Indicative Price
Bid) format (Annexure-X).
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29. ERASURES OR ALTERATIONS:
The Offers containing erasures or alterations or overwriting may not be
considered. There should be no hand-written material, corrections or alterations
in the offer. Technical details must be completely filled in. Correct technical
information of the product being offered must be filled in. Filling up of the
information using terms such as “OK”, “accepted”, “noted”, “as given in
brochure/manual” is not acceptable. The Bank may treat such Offers as not
adhering to the tender guidelines and as unacceptable.
30. ASSUMPTIONS/PRESUMPTIONS/MODIFICATIONS:
The Bank would like to expressly state that any assumption, presumptions,
modifications, terms, conditions, deviation etc., which the bidder includes in any
part of the Bidder’s response to this RFP, will not be taken into account either for
the purpose of evaluation or at a later stage, unless such assumptions,
presumptions, modifications, terms, conditions deviations etc., have been
accepted by the Bank and communicated to the bidder in writing. The bidder at
a later date cannot make any plea of having specified any assumption, terms,
conditions, deviation etc in the bidder’s response to this RFP document. No offer
can be modified or withdrawn by a bidder after submission of Bid/s.
31. SUBMISSION OF BIDS:
31.1 The Name and address of the Bidder, RFP No. and Due Date of the RFP
are to be specifically mentioned on the Top of the envelope containing
Bid.
31.2 The bid/s properly superscribed in the manner prescribed in earlier
clauses of this RFP should be sent to the address mentioned below:
The General Manager(Credit),
Tamil Nadu Grama Bank, Head Office,
No.6, Yercaud main road, Hasthampatti,
Salem – 636 007
31.3 If the last day of submission of bids is declared as a holiday under NI
Act by the Government subsequent to issuance of RFP, the next working
day will be deemed to be the last day for submission of the RFP. The
Bid/s which is/are received after the said date and time shall not be
considered.
31.4 If the envelopes, including the outer envelope is not sealed and marked
in the prescribed manner, the Bank will assume no responsibility for
the bid’s misplacement or premature opening.
32. BID OPENING:
32.1 The Part A- Technical Proposal shall be opened in the presence of the
Bidder’s representative/s.
32.2 Bidder’s representative may be present in the place and venue well in time
P a g e 24 | 42
along with an authorization letter in hand for each bid opening under this RFP,
as per the format (Annexure– XI) enclosed.
Note: Authorisation letter should be carried in person and shall not be
placed inside in any of the bid covers.
32.3 Attendance of all the representatives of the bidders who are present
at bid opening will be taken in a register against Name, Name of the
Company and with full signature.
32.4 The Bidders may note that no further notice will be given in this regard.
Further, in case the bank does not function on the aforesaid date due to
unforeseen circumstances or declared as holiday then the bid will be
accepted up to 11.00 AM on the next working day and bids will be
opened at 11.30 AM at the same venue on the same day.
32.5 The following details will be announced at the time of bid opening.
a) Name of the Bidders.
b) Presence or absence of cost of the Bidding document and Bid
security.
c) Such other details as the Bank at its discretion may consider
appropriate.
32.6 If any of the bidders or all bidders who has submitted the tender are not
present during the specified date, time, and venue of opening it will be
deemed that such bidder is not interested to participate in the opening of
the Bid/s and the bank at its discretion will proceed further with opening
of the Part A – Technical Bid in their absence.
32.7 The Part A- Technical Proposal submitted by the bidder will be evaluated
based on the Eligibility Criteria and functional requirements as per
Annexure I to VIII as stipulated in RFP document.
32.8 The Commercial Bid ( Indicative) of only those bidders who are qualified in
Part-A Technical Proposal will be opened for arriving L1 bidder
33. SELECTION OF BIDDER
33.1 Preliminary Scrutiny:
The Bank will scrutinize the Bid/s received to determine whether they are
complete in all respects as per the requirement of RFP, whether the
documents have been properly signed, items are offered as per RFP
requirements and technical documentation as required to evaluate the
offer has been submitted.
Prior to detailed evaluation, the Bank will determine the substantial
responsiveness of each Bid to the bidding document. Substantial
responsiveness means that the bid conforms to all terms & conditions,
scope of work, technical specifications and bidding document is submitted
without any deviations.
33.2 Clarification of Offers:
a) During the process of scrutiny, evaluation and comparison of offers,
the Bank may, at its discretion, seek clarifications from all the
P a g e 25 | 42
bidders/any of the bidders on the offer made by them. The bidder has
to respond to the bank and submit the relevant proof /supporting
documents required against clarifications, if applicable. The request for
such clarifications and the Bidders response will necessarily be in writing
and it should be submitted within the time frame stipulated by the Bank.
b) The Bank may, at its discretion, waive any minor non- conformity or
any minor irregularity in the offer. Bank’s decision with regard to ‘minor
non- conformity’ is final. The waiver shall be binding on all the bidders
and the Bank reserves the right for such waivers.
33.3 Evaluation of Bid:
a) The Bank will evaluate the bid submitted by the bidders under this RFP.
The Part A- Technical Proposal submitted by the bidder will be evaluated
based on Annexure I - VIII of RFP. The Commercial Bid of only those
bidders who qualified in Part A-Technical Proposal will be reckoned for
evaluation purpose.
b) The Bid will be evaluated by a Committee of officers of the Bank. If
warranted, the Bank may engage the services of external consultants for
evaluation of the bid. It is Bank's discretion to decide at the relevant point
of time.
33.4 Bidders Presentation /Site Visits
a) Bidders may be required to prepare for making necessary presentations
as a part of the final evaluation in accordance with the responses given for
the identified requirements any time after the last date for submission
of bids.
b) All expenses incurred in connection with the above shall be borne by the
bidder.
c) Setting of evaluation criteria shall be entirely at the discretion of Bank. The
decision of Bank in this regard shall be final and in this regard, no
correspondence shall be entertained.
d) Bidders should arrange for visits to the reference sites wherein the
product is successfully implemented by them. The bidder shall take
necessary permission from the concerned and demonstrate the features &
performance to Bank at their own cost. Bank prefers the Bidder to provide
details of the organization as Reference with the details of contacts as
mentioned in Annexure III of the RFP Document. Bank would preferably
want to have an onsite reference visit or a Telephonic conversation with
the concerned.
33.5 Intimation to Qualified/Successful Bidders:
The Bank will prepare a list of qualified bidders at each stage on the basis of
evaluation of Part A- Technical Proposal and Part B-Commercial Bid. The
names of qualified bidders at Technical Bid would be informed to all eligible
bidders through email. Commercial Bids of only technical qualified bidders
shall be opened. Final list of the bidders (L1, L2, L3….etc) will be announced
as indicated above.
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33.6 Correction of Errors in Commercial Bid:
Bank reserves the right to correct any arithmetical errors furnished in the
Commercial Bid. If any such errors are noticed it will be rectified on the
following basis:
a) Bank may waive off any minor infirmity or non- conformity or
irregularity in a bid, which does not constitute a material deviation.
b) If there is discrepancy in the total arrived at Commercial Bid (addition,
subtraction, multiplication, division and carryover of amount from one
page to another), correct total will be arrived by the Bank and the
same will prevail over the total furnished in the Commercial Bid
c) If there is a discrepancy between words and figures, the rate/ amount
in words shall prevail, unless the amount expressed in words is
related to an arithmetical error in which case, the amount in figures
will prevail, subject to the above two provisions.
d) If the bidder does not accept the correction of errors, the bid will be
rejected.
33.7 Determination of L1 Bidder:
a) L1 Price will be determined after giving effect to arithmetical
correction, if any.
b) The L-1 bidder will be determined on the basis of the lowest price
quoted in the Commercial bid.
34. VALIDITY OF BIDS:
34.1 Bids shall remain valid for 365 days from the date of opening of the Bid. A Bid
valid for a shorter period may be rejected by the Bank as non- responsive.
34.2 In exceptional circumstances, the Bank may seek the Bidders’ consent for
extension of the period of validity. The request and the responses thereto shall
be made in writing. Retention of Earnest Money deposit shall also be suitably
extended.
34.3 The rates quoted by the Service Provider will be valid for the duration of the
tenor of the agreement.
35. BANK’ S RIGHT TO ACCEPT ANY BID AND TO REJECT ANY OR ALL BIDS:
35.1 The Bank reserves the right to accept or reject any Bid /offer received in part
or in full, and to cancel the Bidding process and reject all Bids at any time prior
to contract of award, without thereby incurring any liability to the affected or
Bidder or Bidders or any obligation to inform the affected Bidder or Bidders of
the grounds for the Bank’s action. The Bank reserves the right to reject any Bid
on security and/or other considerations without assigning any reason.
35.2 The Bank reserves the right to cancel the entire Bidding/procurement process
at any stage without assigning any reason whatsoever.
P a g e 27 | 42
36. PERFORMANCE GUARANTEE:
36.1 The successful bidder shall provide irrevocable and unconditional performance
Bank guarantee in the form and manner prescribed by the Bank equivalent
to Rs.25,00,000 (Rupees Twenty five lakhs only) The successful bidder should
submit a Security Deposit/ Performance Guarantee within 30 days from the
date of work order as below:
a) The performance Guarantee should be for 4 years (Three years plus
a claim period of 1 years).
b) The successful bidder should submit Security Deposit by way of DD
favouring Tamil Nadu Grama Bank / Performance Bank Guarantee
issued by a Scheduled Commercial Bank (other than Tamil Nadu
Grama Bank) in India as per Annexure XII.
36.2 Security deposit if submitted in the form of Performance Bank Guarantee, the
guarantee period should be valid for 48 months from the date of placing the
order.
36.3 The security deposit / bank guarantee will be discharged by the bank and
returned to the bidder one year after the successful completion of
implementation of Corporate Business Correspondent Services using Micro
ATM /Tablet.
36.4 The selected bidder shall be responsible for extending the validity date
of the bank guarantees as and when it is due to coincide, on account of delay
in completion of the project
36.5 The Bank shall invoke the Bank guarantee before the expiry of validity, if work
is not completed and the guarantee is not extended or fails to execute the
contract Agreement or if the selected bidder fails to complete his obligations
under the contract. The proceeds of the guarantee shall be payable to the
bank as compensation for any loss from the selected Bidder’s failure to
complete his obligations under the contract.
37. AWARDING OF CONTRACT:
37.1 The Bidder whose commercial bid is accepted and quotes the lowest bid will
be referred to as selected Bidder and Bank will notify the name of the selected
Bidder by displaying in the official Website of Bank.
37.2 The contract shall be awarded and the order shall be placed on selected
Bidder. Bank releases the order either in Full or in part or place more than
one order towards the contract based on banks requirements.
37.3 The selected bidder shall submit the acceptance of the order within seven
days from the date of receipt of the order. No conditional or qualified
acceptance shall be permitted. The effective date for start of provisional
contract with the Selected Bidder shall be the date of acceptance of the order
by the bidder.
37.4 Bank reserves its right to consider at its sole discretion the late acceptance of
the order by selected bidder.
37.5 On failure of the selected bidder to accept the order with in stipulated time,
Bank shall be at liberty to proceed with other technically qualified Bidders
within the purview of the same RFP by calling for fresh commercial quotes
either considering existing commercial quote or fresh commercial quote. The
initially selected bidder stands disqualified for further participation in the
subject bid.
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37.6 Within 15 days from the date of acceptance of the order by the selected
bidder, the bidder shall sign a stamped “Contract agreement” referred to as
Contract in this RFP, with Bank, at the time, place and in the format prescribed
by Bank. All stamp duty charges applicable on the agreement shall be borne
by the selected bidder.
38. REPRESENTATIONS AND WARRANTIES:
38.1 The Bidder warrants that they have obtained all necessary corporate
approvals to enter into an Agreement and that no consent, approval, or
withholding of objection is required from any governmental authority with
respect to the entering into or the performance of this project. The
bidder further warrants that they are under no obligation or restriction,
nor shall they assume any such obligation or restriction, that would in any
way interfere or conflict with, or that would present a conflict of interest
concerning, any obligations under this project.
38.2 Bidder warrants that it shall perform the Services in a professional &
workmanlike manner and materially in accordance with the applicable
specifications in the RFP.
38.3 The Bidder represents that it is duly incorporated, validly existing and in
good standing under as per the laws of the state in which such Party is
incorporated.
38.4 The Bidder represents that it has the corporate power & authority to
enter into Agreements and perform its obligations there under. The
execution, delivery and performance of terms and conditions under
agreements by such Party and the performance of its obligations there
under are duly authorized and approved by all necessary action and no
other action on the part of such Party is necessary to authorize the
execution, delivery and performance under an Agreement.
38.5 The Bidder represents that the submission of responses to the RFP
execution, delivery and performance under an Agreement entered in
case the Bidder is selected:
a) Will not violate or contravene any provision of its documents of
incorporation;
b) Will not violate or contravene any law, statute, rule, regulation,
licensing requirement, order, writ, injunction or decree of any
court, governmental instrumentality or other regulatory,
governmental or public body, agency or authority by which it is
bound or by which any of its properties or assets are bound;
c) Except to the extent that the same have been duly and properly
completed or obtained, will not require any filing with, or
permit, consent or approval of or license from, or the giving of
any notice to, any court, governmental instrumentality or other
regulatory, governmental or public body, agency or authority,
joint venture party, or any other entity or person whatsoever;
d) To the best of its knowledge, after reasonable investigation, no
P a g e 29 | 42
representation or warranty by such Party in this Agreement and
no document furnished or to be furnished to the other Party to
this Agreement, or in connection herewith or with the
transactions contemplated hereby, contains or will contain any
untrue or misleading statement or omits or will omit any fact
necessary to make the statements contained herein or therein, in
light of the circumstances under which made, not misleading.
There have been no events or transactions or facts or information
which has come to, or upon reasonable diligence, should have
come to the attention of such Party and which have not been
disclosed herein or in a schedule hereto, having a direct impact
on the transactions contemplated hereunder.
39. COMPLIANCE WITH LAWS:
39.1 The Bidder shall undertake to observe , adhere to, abide by, comply with
and notify Bank about all laws in force or as are made applicable in
future, pertaining to or applicable to them, their business , their
employees or their obligations towards them and all purposes of this
tender and shall indemnify, keep indemnified, hold harmless, defend and
protect Bank and its employees/ officers/ staff/ personnel/
representatives/ agents from any failure or omission on its part to do so
and against all claims or demands of liability and all consequences that
may occur or arise for any default or failure on its part to conform or comply
with the above and all other statutory obligations arising there from.
39.2 The Bidder shall promptly and timely obtain all such consents,
permissions, approvals, licenses, etc, as may be necessary or required
for any of the purposes of this project or for the conduct of their own
business under any applicable Law, Government Regulation/Guidelines
and shall keep the same valid and in force during th e term of the project,
and in the event of any failure or omission to do so, shall indemnify, keep
indemnified, hold harmless, defend, protect and fully compensate Bank
and its employees/ officers/ staff/ personnel/ representatives/agents
from and against all claims or demands of liability and all consequences
that may occur or arise for any default or failure on its part to conform or
comply with the above & all other statutory obligations arising there from
and Bank shall give notice of any such claim or demand of liability within
reasonable time to the Bidder.
39.3 The Bidder agrees that the Bidder shall not be entitled to assign / sub
lease any or all of its rights and/or obligations under this tender and
subsequent Agreement to any entity including Bidder’ s affiliate without
the prior written consent of Bank.
39.4 In case Bank undergoes a merger, amalgamation, takeover, consolidation,
reconstruction, change of ownership, etc., this RFP shall be considered
to be assigned to the new entity and such an act shall not affect the
rights of the Bidder under this RFP.
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40. CANCELLATION OF THE ORDER AND TERMINATION OF CONTRACT:
40.1 Bank reserves its right to cancel the order and terminate the contract in
the event of one or more of the following situations, that are not
occasioned due to reasons solely and directly attributable to Bank alone:
a) Delay in implementation beyond the specified period that is agreed
in the contract that shall be signed with the successful Bidder; and
b) Serious discrepancy in the quality of service expected during the
implementation, rollout and subsequent maintenance process.
40.2 In case of order cancellation, any payments made by Bank to the Bidder
would necessarily have to be returned to Bank with interest @15% per
annum.
40.3 Notwithstanding anything contained in this RFP, Bank shall terminate
this RFP if it is found that the project envisaged under this RFP could not
be taken place on account of change in policy /guidelines of the
Bank/Government/RBI or any other regulatory/authority.
40.4 Failure to observe the time schedule as mentioned in point No.52 of the
RFP for implementation, appointment and rollout.
40.5 If there is contravention as provided under Clause 54.
40.6 If violation of social media policy is detected at any stage.
40.7 Bank shall also have the right to cancel the order and terminate the
contract by issuing a 30 days notice to the successful bidders without
assigning any reasons.
40.8 Effect of Termination
a) The Bidder agrees that it shall not be relieved of its obligations
under the reverse transition mechanism notwithstanding the
termination of the contract.
b) Reverse Transition mechanism would typically include service and
tasks that are required to be performed / rendered by the Bidder
to the Bank or its designee to ensure smooth handover and
transitioning of Bank's deliverables, maintenance and facility
management.
c) Same terms ( including payment terms) which were applicable
during the term of the contract should be applicable for reverse
transition services
41. INDEMNITY:
41.1 The bidder shall keep and hold the Bank indemnified and harmless from
time to time and at all times against all actions, proceedings, claims,
suits, liabilities( including statutory liability), penalties, demands,
charges, costs ( including legal costs) and expenses, damages, losses
and any other expenses which may be caused to or suffered by or made
or taken against the Bank arising out of:
a) The breach, default or non- performance of undertakings,
P a g e 31 | 42
warranties, covenants or obligations by the bidder or by his
agents.
b) Any contravention or Non compliance with any applicable laws,
regulations, rules, statutory or legal requirements by the bidder.
41.2 The bidder shall indemnify, protect and save the Bank against all claims,
losses, costs, damages, expenses, action suits and other proceedings,
resulting from infringement of any law pertaining to patent, trademarks,
copyrights etc. or such other statutory infringements in respect of
Solution supplied by them.
a) All indemnities shall survive notwithstanding expiry or
termination of the contract and bidder shall continue to be liable
under the indemnities.
b) The limits specified in the above said clause shall not apply to
claims made by the Bank/third parties in case of infringement of
Intellectual property rights or for claims relating to the loss or
damage to real property and tangible personal property and for
bodily injury or death and in these cases the liability will be
unlimited.
c) All Employees/ agents engaged by the Bidder shall be in sole
employment of the bidder and the bidder shall be solely
responsible for their salaries, wages, statutory payments etc.That
under no circumstances shall the Bank be liable for any payment
or claim or compensation ( including but not limited to compensation
on account of injury / death / termination) of any nature to the
employees and personnel of the bidder.
d) The service provider will be held accountable for any untoward
incidents and the reputation risks to the bank.
42. INSPECTION OF RECORDS:
Bank at its discretion may verify the accounts and records or appoint third
party for verification including an auditor for audit of accounts & records
a nd the vendor shall extend all cooperation in this regard.
43. ASSIGNMENT:
43.1 The vendors shall not assign to any one, in whole or in part, it’s
obligations to perform under the RFP/contract, except with the Bank’s
prior written consent.
43.2 If the Bank undergoes a merger, amalgamation, take over, consolidation,
reconstruction, change of ownership etc., this RFP shall be considered
to be assigned to the new entity and such an act shall not affect the
rights and obligations of the Vendor under this RFP.
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44. PUBLICITY:
Any publicity by the bidder in which the name of the Bank is to be used will be
done only with the explicit written permission of the Bank.
45. INSURANCE:
The furniture/fittings/cash on hand and cash in transit are to be insured by the
bidder against all risks of loss or damages.
46. CONFIDENTIALITY AND NON-DISCLOSURE
46.1 The bidder shall take all necessary precautions to ensure that all
information shared to it are treated as confidential and not disclosed or used
other than for the purpose of project execution. Bidder shall suitably defend,
indemnify Bank for any loss/damage suffered by Bank on account of and to
the extent of any disclosure of the confidential information. The bidder shall
furnish an undertaking as given in Annexure-XIV.
46.2 No media release/public announcement or any other reference to the RFP
or any program there under shall be made without the written consent of the
Bank, by photographic, electronic or other means.
47. CORRUPT AND FRAUDULENT PRACTICES
47.1 As per Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) directives, it is required that
Bidders /Suppliers / Contractors observe the highest standard of ethics
during the procurement and execution of such contracts in pursuance of this
policy:
47.2 "Corrupt Practice" means the offering, giving, receiving or soliciting of
anything of values to influence the action of an official in the procurement
process or in contract execution AND
47.3 "Fraudulent Practice" means a misrepresentation of facts in order to
influence a procurement process or the execution of contract to the
detriment of the Bank and includes collusive practice among bidders
( prior to or after bid submission) designed to establish bid prices at artificial
non- competitive levels and to deprive the Bank of the benefits of free and
open competition.
47.4 The Bank reserves the right to reject a proposal for award if it determines
that the bidder recommended for award has engaged in corrupt or
fraudulent practices in competing for the contract in question.
47.5 The Bank reserves the right to declare a firm ineligible, either indefinitely
or for a stated period of time, to be awarded a contract if at any time it
determines that the firm has engaged in corrupt or fraudulent practices in
competing for or in executing the contract.
47.6 The decision of Bank in determining the above aspects will be final and
binding on the all the Bidders. No Bidder shall contact through any means
of communication the Bank or any of its employees on any matter relating
to its Bid, from the time of Bid opening to the time the contract is awarded.
P a g e 33 | 42
If the bidder wishes to bring additional information to the notice of the
Bank, it may do so in writing.
47.7 Any effort/attempt by a bidder to influence the Bank in its decision on bid
evaluation, Bid comparison or contract award may result in rejection of the
Bidder’s bid and/or blacklisting the Bidder. The Bidder agrees not to hire,
solicit or accept solicitation either directly or through a third party from any
of the employees of the Bank directly involved in this contract during the
period of contract and one year thereafter, except as the parties may agree
on the case to case basis.
47.8 The selected bidder shall ensure compliance of CVC guidelines issued
or to be issued from time to time for selection of vendor by the Bank.
48. MODIFICATION/CANCELLATION OF RFP:
The bank reserves the right to modify/cancel/re-tender without assigning any
reasons whatsoever. The bank shall not incur any liability to the affected bidder(s)
on account of such rejection. Bank shall not be obliged to inform the affected
bidder(s) of the grounds for the Bank's rejection/cancellation.
49. HUMAN RESOURCE REQUIREMENT:
The Bidder by executing the agreement shall be deemed to have unconditionally
agreed as under:
49.1 The Bidder shall provide a contingent of well trained personnel and extend
necessary mentoring & operational support to the intermediary network of
agents, etc. as part of the solution/service.
49.2 The Bidder shall confirm that every person deployed by them on the project
has been vetted through a third- party background check prior to their
engagement. The Bidder shall manage the activities of its personnel or others
engaged in the project etc. and shall be accountable for all the personnel
deployed/engaged in the project.
49.3 The Bidder shall confirm that every person deployed by them on the project
to submit Police verification certificate.
49.4 The successful bidder shall deploy One supervisor referred to as BC
Supervisor (BCS) for 50-60 BCAs and One Coordinator referred to as BC
Coordinator ( BCC) for 25-30 BCAs within 30 days from the issue of work
order.
49.5 In case the performance of the Bidder/their CSP/agent/employees
engaged in the project is not satisfactory or is detrimental to the interests
of the Bank, The Bidder shall have to replace the said person within the time
limits stipulated by the Bank. Where the Bidder fails to comply with the Bank’s
request, the Bank may replace the said person or their agents/employees on
its own.
49.6 No right to employment in the Bank shall accrue or arise to the employees or
agents of the Bidder, by virtue of engagement of employees, agents, etc. of
P a g e 34 | 42
the Bidder for any assignment under this project. It is further clarified that the
arrangement herein with the Bidder is a contract for service.
49.7 The Bidder shall exercise due diligence and only engage persons having
established identity, integrity, requisite qualifications & skills and deployment
experience for all critical activities.
49.8 The Bidder shall extend all of the outsourced banking & financial services by
deploying such personal who has high integrity and meet the qualifications &
other criteria stipulated by the Reserve Bank of India, Government or the Bank
from time to time and agrees and undertake that during the subsistence of
this agreement they will not employ any personnel/individual below the
Minimum Wages fixed by appropriate Government on this behalf from time to
time, as per the provisions of Minimum Wages Act 1948.
49.9 The Bidder shall confirm that every person engaged by them will have to be
qualified with BC Certification course conducted by IIBF within 6 months from
the date of issuing work order/intimation.
49.10 All the BCs deployed by the bidder will have to be qualified with BC
certification course as per Reserve Bank of India/ IBA guidelines. In case of
failure to comply with the guidelines and the dates specified the bidder will
be liable for penalty of Rs.1000/- per month or part thereof per BC deployed
who has not qualified the certification course till the time of such qualification.
The penalty shall be waived by the competent authority of the Bank on case
to case basis.
49.11 Further in case of any penalty or punitive action by RBI or any other statutory
authority in the matter will be the responsibility of the SP and any claim by the Bank
in this regard will have to be compensated by the SP within 1 month. For delay in
compensation interest @ 1% per month or part thereof will be payable.
49.12 The Bidder shall confirm that, every persons engaged by them should not
undertake Micro ATM/TAB based transactions within the Branch vicinity with
a radius of 50 meters from the Branch premises.
50. LEGAL DISPUTES AND JURISDICTION OF THE COURT:
50.1 The Bank Clarifies that the Bank shall be entitled to an injunction, restraining
order, right for recovery, specific performance or such other equitable relief
as a court of competent jurisdiction may deem necessary or appropriate to
restrain bidder/prospective bidder from committing any violation or enforce the
performance of the covenants, obligations and representations contained in
this RFP. These injunctive remedies are cumulative and are in addition to any
other rights & remedies the Bank may have at law or in equity, including
without limitation a right for recovery of any amounts & related costs and a
right for damages.
50.2 All disputes and differences of any kind whatsoever, arising out of or in
connection with this contract or in discharge of any obligation arising under
this contract (whether during the course of execution of the order or after
completion & whether beyond or after termination, abandonment or breach
of agreement) shall be resolved amicable. In case of failure to resolve the
P a g e 35 | 42
disputes & differences amicably then the dispute shall be subject to the
exclusive jurisdiction of the courts in Chennai and the parties agree to submit
themselves to the jurisdiction of such court as this RFP/contract agreement
shall be governed by the laws of India.
51. SERVICE AGREEMENT AND PENALTIES:
51.1 Upon completion of the selection process, the bank shall enter into
agreement with the successful bidder who shall agree to the terms and
conditions stipulated by the Bank which among other conditions will also
include the following:
51.2 The Successful bidder should agree to the performance standards
stipulated by the Bank and comply with all the Standard Operating
Procedures (SOPs) prescribed by the bank.
51.3 The service provider should maintain all records & registers as per the
instructions of the Bank and ensure safe custody of all records and
documents.
51.4 The Bank shall be entitled to inspect & audit the records maintained by
the service provider through its officers or auditors / representatives and
the service provider shall provide access to the officers and
representatives of the Bank or other regulatory authorities.
51.5 The service provider should allow access to RBI/NABARD or persons
authorized by RBI/NABARD to inspect and access documents / records
and obtain copies of records.
51.6 It will be the sole responsibility of the Service Provider to provide
uninterrupted service to the customer barring unusual situations or calamities
like flood, earth quake, etc.
51.7 The service provider and its representatives should maintain secrecy &
confidentiality of all records and information in respect of the outsourced
service.
51.8 The service provider should indemnify the Bank for breach of
confidentiality & obligations by the service provider, its representatives
and agents at the first demand by the Bank.
51.9 The Service Provider shall indemnify, protect & save the Bank against all
claims, losses, costs, damages, expenses, action suits and other
proceedings, resulting from infringement of any law pertaining to patent,
trademarks, copyrights etc.
51.10 The Service provider shall ensure all technology compliances and
maintenance requirements as may be prescribed by the Bank. The Service
Provider will also have to meet the prescribed requirements that may be
stipulated by the bank to be maintained at the BCOs (Service Level
Agreement is furnished as part of BC Agreement). A well- defined disaster
recovery and business continuity plan from business angle, should be in
place as per the satisfaction of the Bank.
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51.11 The Successful Bidder should provide indemnity to the Bank against all
claims, costs & actions for all commissions and omissions by the service
provider and its representatives.
51.12 The Business Correspondent should not, in any way, convey to the
BCAs that they can claim jobs with the bank on account of becoming
BCA. In this regard, a suitable clause should be included in the
agreement entered between Corporate BC & BCA.
51.13 Corporate BC will enter into a comprehensive agreement with BCA. A copy
of such agreement is to be submitted along with the Technical Bid.
Any suggestion given by the bank should be incorporated in the BCA
agreement.
51.14 The Banks shall have the right to terminate the agreement by issue of
notice without assigning reason and also in the case of breach of
contractual obligations by the service provider separately.
51.15 A Corporate BC agreement format will be as per Bank/IBA draft.
51.16 Each agent must perform minimum 200 financial transactions per month.
If non- performance continues for 3 months, Bank may ask to change the
agent without any cost to Bank.
51.17 In the case of failure on the part of the SP to open BC outlet /mobile
BC at any allotted centers a penalty of Rs. 1000/- per day for the period
beyond the permitted time line will be levied subject to a maximum
penalty of Rs.10,000 /- per month till the establishment of the centers.
52. TIME SCHEDULE:
52.1 Bidder/s have to implement the solutions in all identified locations within 45
days of issuance of work order/intimation. The Bidder must give preference to
existing Business Correspondents already engaged by the Bank.
52.2 All activities such as engaging BCs, customers transaction etc for BCs,
should be as per the requirements of RFP.
52.3 A detailed Schedule will be drawn up by the Bank and shared with
selected bidder/s at the time of placing order.
52.4 The delay in compliance/supply of the above items will result in penalty
as below;
52.5 Without prejudice to the bank’s right to terminate the agreement, for any
defective service or inability to provide the service for any reason or for non-
functioning of the BC agents for any reason, beyond 10 (Ten) working days
continuously, a penalty @ Rs. 1000/- per day (from the 11th day onwards)
may be levied for each of the Business correspondent locations with a
maximum of Rs.10,000/- per month per centre. The penalty will come into
force after three month from the date of activation of BCO and will be
levied on BC.
52.6 Each BC agent has to carryout minimum 200 financial transactions per
month, failing which a penalty of Rs.500/- per month per BC location will
be imposed on the Corporate BC at the discretion of the Bank. This clause
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will not be applicable during first three calendar months of generation
of terminal ID to BCA.
53. PERIOD OF CONTRACT:
The period of contract shall initially be for a period of 3 (three) years from
date of acceptance. Bank also reserves its right to renew the contract after 3
years on the same terms and conditions at mutually agreed revised/revisited
commercials between the Bank and the Selected Bidder. In case of shifting
of the services to a new Service Provider, due to deficiency in the services
extended by selected Bidder during the period of the contract or due to policy
changes, which warrants switching over to new solution, the existing Selected
Bidder shall extend all required support for smooth switch over.
54. REVIEW OF SERVICES:
54.1 The performance of the Corporate Business Correspondent will be
reviewed, BC location wise, by the bank every month initially, and
thereafter at such intervals as the bank may decide. A Steering Committee
at RO level/ Head office level consisting of Bank officials, representative of
Business Correspondent and the concerned BCAs will also interact every
month to identify and address bottlenecks in BC operation. The bank
reserves the right to terminate the contract at any point of time if:
a) The services are found to be unsatisfactory;
b) There is a consistent failure to maintain the customer
satisfaction;
c) Desired levels of output by the Business Correspondent are not
met;
d) There is a discrepancy found in the accounts maintained by the
Business Correspondent and the records of the Bank;
e) The customers serviced by the Business Correspondent
complain to the Bank that the Business Correspondent is
inefficient;
f) There is fraud in the accounts handled by the Business
Correspondent/BCA; or
g) Any other reason which in the opinion of the bank is not
conducive to the continuation of the Services of the Business
Correspondent.
54.2 However, before terminating the contract, the bank will give a written
notice specifying the defects in services to Business Correspondent
and seek rectification of the defects within a period of 7 days. In case the
defects are not rectified, the contract will be terminated.
54.3 It is expected that BCAs are engaged & are activated in the locations
mentioned in Appendix- I of this RFP within 45 days of award of contract/
work order/Intimation. Shortfall of more than 20% in achieving the above
targets will result in the services being treated as ‘ unsatisfactory’.
54.4 The Bank shall not be liable for the acts of omission and/ or commission
of the BCA engaged by the Business Correspondent. The Business
Correspondent is responsible for compliance of all applicable laws &
regulations in relation to the BCA engaged by them and the BCA
P a g e 38 | 42
engaged by the SP shall not be eligible to claim any benefit or fee or
charge from the Bank. The Business Correspondent is responsible for
all performance or obligations under the agreement and the Bank shall have
no obligation towards the BCA engaged by the Business Correspondent.
55. PAYMENT TERMS:
55.1 Payment will be made by the Bank on monthly basis in arrears on
aggregated basis within 20 days on submission of original invoices by the
Business Correspondent duly countersigned by authorized signatory.
Payment will be made for the enrollments completed in all respects i. e.
demographic data, photo and biometrics with CBS account number.
Payment for transactions will be done for all the transactions excluding
accommodative transactions. No payment will be done for balance
enquiry.
55.2 The BC is eligible for charges stipulated under Appendix X
55.3 Eligible financial transaction means the financial transactions done at BC
outlet after factoring in eligible transactions as per terms and conditions given
in Annexure X during a month.
55.4 Successful bidder shall be solely liable & responsible for compliance of
applicable Labour Laws in respect of its employees, agents &
representatives and in particular Laws relating to terminal benefits such
as minimum wages, Pension, Gratuity, Provident Fund, Bonus or other
benefits to which they may be entitled and the Bank shall have no liability
in this regard.
56. FORCE MAJEURE:
56.1 The Business Correspondent or the Bank shall not be liable for default
or non- performance of the obligations under the contract, if such default
or non- performance of the obligations under this contract is caused by any
reason or circumstances or occurrences beyond the control of the Business
Correspondent or the bank, i. e. Force Majeure. For the purpose of this
clause, “Force Majeure” shall mean an event beyond the control of the
parties, due to or as a result of or caused by act of God, wars,
insurrections, riots, earth quake & fire, revolutions, floods, epidemics,
quarantine restrictions, trade embargos, declared general strikes in
relevant industries, satellite failure, act of Govt. of India, events not
foreseeable but does not include any fault or negligence or carelessness
on the part of the parties, resulting in such a situation. In the event of
any such intervening Force Majeure, either party shall notify the other in
writing of such circumstances or the cause thereof immediately within
five calendar days. Unless otherwise directed by the Bank, the Business
Correspondent shall continue to perform/render/discharge other
obligations as far as they can reasonably be attended/fulfilled and shall
seek all reasonable alternative means for performance affected by the
Event of Force Majeure.
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56.2 In such a case, the time for performance shall be extended by a period(s)
not less than the duration of such delay. If the duration of delay
continues beyond a period of 180 days, the Bank and the Business
Correspondent/Bidder shall hold consultations with each other in an
endeavour to find a solution to the problem. Notwithstanding above, the
decision of the Bank shall be final and binding on the Business
Correspondent.
57. COMPLIANCE WITH STATUTORY AND REGULATORY PROVISIONS:
It shall be the sole responsibility of the Business Correspondent/Bidder to
comply with all statutory and regulatory provisions while delivering the services
mentioned in this RFP.
58. SOCIAL MEDIA POLICY:
No person of the bank or the Contractors and third parties shall violate the
social media policy of the bank.
The following acts on the part of personnel of the Bank or Contractor and third
parties shall be construed as violation of Social Media Policy:
i)
Non adherence to the standards/guidelines in relation to social media
policy issued by the bank from time to time.
ii)
Any omission or commission which exposes the Bank to actual or
potential monetary loss or otherwise, reputation loss on account of non-
adherence of social media related systems and procedures.
59. TAXES AND DUTIES:
59.1 The Business Correspondent shall be entirely responsible for all applicable
taxes, duties, levies, charges, license fees, road permits, etc.
59.2 Providing clarifications/particulars/documents etc. to the appropriate tax
authorities for assessment of tax, compliance with labour and other laws,
etc will be the responsibility of the Business Correspondent at his cost.
59.3 Tax deduction at Source - Wherever the laws and regulations require
deduction of such taxes at the source of payment, the Bank shall effect
such deductions from the payment due to the Business Correspondent.
The remittance of amounts so deducted and issuance of certificate for
such deductions shall be made by the Bank as per the laws and
regulations in force. Nothing in the Contract shall relieve the Business
Correspondent from his responsibility to pay any tax that may be levied
in India on income and profits made by the Business Correspondent in
respect of this contract.
59.4 The BC/Service provider shall deduct such applicable taxes out of the
payments made to the BCAs and remit to the concerned authorities within
the stipulated time line. The Bank shall not be responsible for the same
whatsoever.
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59.5 Goods and Service Taxes (GST) and its compliance:
a) Goods and Service Tax law in India is a comprehensive, multi- stage,
destination based tax that will be levied on every value addition. Service
provider shall have to follow GST law as per time being enforced along
with certain mandatory feature mentioned hereunder
b) TDS (Tax Deducted on Source) is required to be deducted as per
applicable under GST law on the payment made or credited to the Service
Provider of taxable goods and Services. It would enhance the tax base
and would be compliance and self-maintaining tax law based on
processes. The statutory compliances contained in the statues include
obtaining registration under the GST law by the existing assesses as well
as new assesses, periodic payments of taxes and furnishing various
statement return by all the registered taxable person.
c) It is mandatory to pass on the benefit due to reduction in rate of tax or from
Input Tax Credit (ITC) to the Bank by way of commensurate reduction in
the prices under the GST law.
If Service Provider as the case may be, is blacklisted in the GST (Goods and
Services Tax) portal or rating of a Service Provider falls below a mandatory
level, as decided time to time may be relevant ground of cancellation of
contract.
Bank shall deduct tax at source, if any, as per the applicable law of the
land time being enforced. The Service provider shall pay any other taxes
separately or along with GST if any attributed by the Government
Authorities including Municipal and local bodies or any other authority
authorized in this regard.
60. TERMS AND CONDITIONS FOR THE PROPOSAL:
60.1 Bank invites the Bidder’ s attention to the following terms & conditions
which underline this RFP and which provide a statement of understanding
between the interested parties.
60.2 Bank reserves the right to accept or reject any and all proposals, to revise
the RFP, to request one or more re- submissions or clarifications from
one or more Bidders, or to cancel the process in part or whole. No Bidder is
obligated to respond to or to continue to respond to the RFP.
Additionally, Bank reserves the right to alter the specifications, in part or
whole, during the RFP process, and without re-issuing the RFP. Each party
shall be entirely responsible for its own costs and expenses that are
incurred while participating in the RFP and subsequent presentations and
contract negotiation processes.
60.3 Responses submitted by a Bidder to this RFP represent a firm offer to
contract on the terms & conditions described in the Bidder’s response.
The proposal must be signed by an official authorized to commit the
bidder to the terms & conditions of the proposal. Bidder must clearly
identify the full title & authorization of the designated official and provide
a statement of bid commitment with the accompanying signature of the
official.
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60.4 The RFP and all supporting documentation/templates are the sole
property of Tamil Nadu Grama Bank and shall NOT be redistributed without
the prior written consent of Tamil Nadu Grama Bank. Violation of this
would be a breach of trust and may, inter-alia cause the Bidder to be
irrevocably disqualified.
61. CERTIFICATE BY THE BIDDER:
By submitting a signed bid, the Bidder certifies that:
61.1 The Bidder has arrived at the prices in its bid without agreement with any
other bidder of this RFP for the purpose of restricting competition.
61.2 The prices in the bid have not been disclosed and shall not be disclosed
to any other bidder of this RFP.
61.3 No attempt by the Bidder to induce any other bidder to submit or not to
submit a bid for restricting competition has occurred.
61.4 Each Bidder must indicate whether or not they have any actual or
potential conflict of interest related to contracting services with Tamil Nadu
Grama Bank. In case such conflicts of interest do arise, the Bidder must
indicate the manner in which such conflicts can be resolved.
61.5 The Bank is not responsible for any assumptions or judgments made by the
Bidders for arriving at any type of sizing or costing. The Bank at all times
will benchmark the performance of the Bidder to the RFP documents
circulated to the Bidders and the expected service levels as mentioned in
these documents. In the event of any deviations from the requirements of
these documents, the Bidder must make good the same at no extra
costs to the Bank, in order to achieve the desired service levels as well
as meeting the requirements of these documents.
61.6 The Bidder represents and acknowledges to the Bank that it possesses
necessary experience, expertise and ability to undertake and fulfil its
obligations, under all phases involved in the performance of the
provisions of this RFP. Bank will be providing the hardware and software
solution. If any services, functions or responsibilities not specifically
described in this RFP are an inherent, necessary or customary part of
the deliverables or services and are required for proper performance or
provision of the deliverables or services in accordance with this RFP,
they shall be deemed to be included within the scope of the deliverables or
services, as if such services, functions or responsibilities were specifically
required and described in this RFP and shall be provided by the Bidder
at no additional cost to the Bank. The Bidder also acknowledges that
the Bank relies on this statement of fact, therefore neither accepting
responsibility for, nor relieving the Bidder of responsibility for the
performance of all provisions and terms and conditions of this RFP, the
Bank expects the Bidder to fulfill all the terms and conditions of this RFP.
61.7 The Bank shall be under no obligation to accept the lowest or any other
offer received in response to this tender notice and shall be entitled to
reject any or all offers including those received late or incomplete offers
without assigning any reason whatsoever. The Bank reserves the right to
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make any changes in the terms and conditions of purchase. The Bank
will not be obliged to meet and have discussions with any Bidder, and / or
to listen to any representations.
61.8 The successful bidder shall not assign to any one, in whole or in part, it’s
obligations to perform under the Contract, except with the Bank’s written
consent. Merger, demerger, amalgamation, take-over, consolidation,
reconstruction, change of ownership etc of the successful bidder shall be
done only with the previous written consent of Bank.
If the Bidder undergoes a merger, demerger, amalgamation, take over,
consolidation, reconstruction, change of ownership etc. without Bank’s
consent in writing, in that event, without prejudice to Bank’s right to
terminate the contract, the agreement shall be voidable at the sole
discretion of Bank.
62. LIABILITIES OF THE BANK:
This RFP is not an offer by the Bank, but an invitation for bidder response. No
contractual obligation whatsoever shall arise on the Bank from the RFP process
unless and until a formal contract is signed & executed by duly authorized
officials of the bank and the bidder.
63. PROPOSAL FORMAT:
As the bidder’s proposal is central to the evaluation & selection process, it is
important that the bidder carefully prepares the proposal as per the prescribed
formats only. Under no circumstance, the format can be changed, altered or
modified. Bidders must provide categorical and factual replies to specific
questions. Bidders may provide additional technical literature relating to their
proposals but in a separate annexure. Correct and current technical details
must be completely filled in. The Appendix/annexure to this RFP shall form integral
part of the RFP.
64. OWNERSHIP:
The RFP and all supporting documents are the sole property of the Bank and
violation of the terms of this RFP will be a breach of trust & breach of the
initial contract conditions and the Bank has a right to initiate any action
deemed appropriate.
GENE RAL MANA GER