Kochi: Creating waves, State Bank of India (SBI) today (Feb 09, 2004) launched a state-of-the-art "floating ATM", said to be the first in the country.

The ATM (Automatic Teller Machine), which was inaugurated by Ashok Kini, Deputy Managing Director (IT), SBI, Corporate centre, Mumbai, has been installed on a Jhankar (ferry which transports vehicles and passengers) plying between Ernakulam and Vypeen, the most densely populated area in Asia.

The ferry, which belongs to the Kerala Shipping and Inland Navigation Corporation (KSINC), will be making 30 trips a day across the two islands carrying approximately 5000 people and their vehicles.

The ATM will cater to the needs of the travelling public in Ernakulam and has been supplied by NCR corporation while connectivity has been established by Reliance Infocomm using CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access) technology.

Later Kini told a press meet that SBI Group today has 9000 plus branches in India and had the largest ATM network in the country, with around 3000 ATMs spread across the country.

The bank was also planning to set up ATMs in college campuses and also take it to rural areas and to smaller towns. In Kerala, SBI will have 140 ATMs by year end and by March 2005, it would be doubled, he said.

With the tourist inflow into the State picking up, there will be no dearth of customers, he added.

The bank has recently set up an ATM at Leh, about 16,000 feet above sea level, and the facility would benefit the Army personnel stationed there.