FAST FORWARD

A Quarterly Newsletter
from

Institute for Development and Research

in Banking Technology
(Established by Reserve Bank of India)
IDRBT Hyderabad - 500 057, INDIA.
The Think - tank for Banking Technology Vol : 3 December 1999 No : 2

Conference of Chiefs of Public Sector Banks

on INFINET and Technology Upgradation
(December 7, 1999)

The Conference was organised by IDRBT at to banking and electronic commerce. He briefed the
Hyderabad on Tuesday, the 7th December 1999. The august gathering on the initiatives taken by IDRBT
Inaugural Function, held in the IDRBT Auditorium, for technology upgradation in the Banking Industry.
was attended by a large number of dignitaries, Dr.Gulati mentioned with pride that setting up of the
special invitees, delegates, the press and the INFINET, a nation-wide communication backbone for
electronic media. Dr. Bimal Jalan, Governor of the the Banks and Financial Institutions, is a landmark
Reserve Bank of India graced the occasion as the achievement for IDRBT in particular and for the
Chief Guest. Industry in general. Nearly 337 VSATs have been
commissioned and a 100 more are to be
commissioned shortly, to spread the wings of
INFINET far and wide, he said.

In his Inaugural Address, the Governor, Dr. Bimal

Jalan emphasised the urgency for technology
upgradation in the Public Sector Banks to improve
customer service and productivity and to meet the
emerging challenges of competition and
globalisation in the banking industry. He
complimented the efforts taken by IDRBT for setting
up the INFINET backbone for inter-bank
Dr. V.P. Gulati, Director, IDRBT, welcoming the dignitaries.
Seated on the dais, from left to right, are : Dr. Y.V. Reddy,
Dr. Bimal Jalan, Shri S.P. Talwar, Dr. A. Vasudevan and
Shri K.R. Ganapathy.

Dr. Y.V. Reddy, Shri. S.P. Talwar, Deputy Governors of

RBI, Dr. A. Vasudevan and Shri M.G. Srivastava,
Executive Directors of RBI, and the Members of the
Governing Council of IDRBT were part of the galaxy
of dignitaries present.

Dr.V.P. Gulati, Director, IDRBT, delivered the

Welcome Address. The Director traced the recent
The Governor ...
developments in technology with special reference
delivering the Inaugural Address.
communication. He exhorted the Bank Chiefs to take
steps for early implementation of the
recommendations of the Committee on Technology
Upgradation headed by Dr.A. Vasudevan, ED, RBI.

Dr.A. Vasudevan in his address highlighted the focus

of the Recommendations made by the Committee
on Technology Upgradation. He emphasised the key
role to be played by IBA and the Bank Chiefs in
implementing the recommendations.

The Inaugural Function ended with a Vote of Thanks

by Shri.K.R. Ganapathy, General Manager, IDRBT.
Shri. S.R. Mittal, Dr. V.P Gulati, Shri. S.P. Talwar,
The Panel Discussion, which followed in the Dr. A.Vasudevan, Shri.S.S. Ghosh and Dr.R.H. Patil...
afternoon, was headed by Shri.S.P. Talwar, Deputy during the panel discussion.
Governor, RBI. The other members on the panel Committee on Technology Upgradation and also
underscored the need for technology planning for
the future.

The Action Points that emerged from the Conference

were:

1. Banks should prepare an I.T. Plan for the next

3-5 years and submit it to RBI and IDRBT at
the earliest.

2. IBA may explore the ways of achieving a

minimum level of standardisation of systems
and interfaces across the Banks, at the earliest.

A view of the delegates during the 3. IBA may act as a motivator and facilitator for
inaugural session. technology upgradation in member Banks.
were: Dr. A. Vasudevan, Executive Director, RBI, Dr. 4. INFINET CUG members will have the freedom
R.H. Patil, Managing Director, National Stock to choose their own email and messaging
Exchange, Mumbai, Shri S. S. Ghosh, Chairman & solutions with proper interface with MS-
Managing Director, CMC Ltd., Shri Shashi Ullal, Exchange, which is the messaging backbone
President & Managing Director, Hughes Escorts
on the Network.
Communications Ltd., Shri S. R. Mittal, Chief General
Manager, RBI, and Dr. V.P.Gulati, Director, IDRBT. 5. The central gateway at the RBI end would be
the IBM S/390 Mainframe system as far as
The discussions focussed attention on INFINET
National Clearing. Payment and Settlement
related issues, Payment Systems and Inter-bank and
Intra-bank applications that can be used on the Systems are concerned. Banks will have to
INFINET. The Panel members from NSE, CMC and keep this in mind while using or acquiring
HECL shared their experiences in technology hardware and software systems and solutions
upgradation and implementation issues. The group for inter-bank transactions, so that they will
took a closer look at the issues involved in have proper interfaces with the central
implementing the recommendations of the gateway.
National Seminar on E-Commerce for Financial Sector
(December 18, 1999)

IDRBT was the venue for an impressive National was attended by over 100 delegates who were
Seminar on E-Commerce for Financial Sector. This from Banks and Financial Institutions, Academicians,
one-day seminar was organised by CMC Ltd. and I.T experts and Service Providers.
IDRBT in collaboration with the Ministry of
This seminar was organised as part of the project,
Information Technology, Govt. of India. The seminar
which is currently on - "Technologies for E-
Commerce". This project, sponsored by the Dept.
of Electronics, Govt. of India, New Delhi has been
undertaken jointly by IDRBT and CMC Ltd.

The Seminar was inaugurated by His Excellency Dr.C.

Rangarajan, Governor of Andhra Pradesh and former
Governor of RBI.

In his Welcome Address, Shri S.S. Ghosh, CMD of

CMC Ltd., recalled the pioneering role played by
Dr.Rangarajan in introducing computerisation in
banks in our country. The distinguished speakers
His Excellency, Dr. C. Rangarajan, Governor of Andhra
from the national level will throw more light on the
various issues involved in e-commerce, he said. Pradesh, inaugurating the National Seminar.

Dr.V.P. Gulati, in his introductory remarks drew the flourish, he said. He emphasised the need for a
attention of the audience to the faster transition from sound, secure, reliable, efficient and technology
brick and mortar market zones to borderless virtual oriented financial system to support the
markets. All of us should work towards evolving open development of e-commerce.
standards for universal reach and connectivity, The inaugural function ended with a vote of thanks
scalability to grow with the global business volumes, by Dr.P. Dasgupta, ED, CMC Ltd.
reliability and security, he said and emphasised that
the primary purpose of the seminar was The Seminar had three sessions. Session I was
dissemination of knowledge in this area. chaired by Prof. D.B. Phatak, from IIT, Mumbai. and
the topics presented were:
Dr.A.K. Chakravarthi, Advisor and Head of I.T and
Telecommunications, Ministry of Information Communication Infrastructure: Plan and preparedness
Technology, spoke on the Govt. of India initiatives for e-commerce.
on e-commerce. He said that India has turned out
– Shri. Amitab Kumar
to be a major destination for offshore services
Director (Operations), VSNL
and we can tap a significant share of the global
e-commerce market. Outlining the initiatives taken Web Hosting Services for E-Commerce: Options and
so far, he said that the telecom group on IT enabled Opportunities.
services was likely to submit its plan of action by - Shri. J. Avinash
the month-end. To extend the reach of Internet, 188 Head, Web Hosting Services, Satyam Infoway
licences have so far been given to ISPs in the private
E-Commerce: Opportunities & Challenges, General
sector, he mentioned.
Issues, Technology / Financial Sector.
In his Inaugural Address, Dr. Rangarajan lauded - Shri N.N.Murthy
IDRBT for the commendable progress it has Senior Project Manager, CMC Ltd
achieved, within a span of three years, in the INFINET Payment Systems Infrastructure for the
promotion of I.T. solutions for the efficient functioning Banks.
of the financial sector. Elaborating on the emerging - Shri. K.R. Ganapathy
trends in e-commerce, he said internet banking was Advisor, IDRBT
driven by four inter-linked factors, namely,
E-Commerce Application: Issues & Experiences in
accelerated customer demand, increased
Stock Exchange Sector.
competition, bankers' relentless drive for improving
- Ms. Deena Mehta
efficiency with cost reduction and the worldwide
Vice President, Bombay Stock Exchange
regulation of the financial market. He hoped that the
Government would chip in with amendments to Session 2 was chaired by Dr.S. Ramani, Director,
different acts such as the Negotiable Instruments Act, National Centre for Software Technology, Mumbai.
RBI Act and the Bankers Books Evidence Act. Among The Presentations were:
the recent Government initiatives, the I.T. Bill 1999 Approach to E-Commerce by Mutual Funds
is a comprehensive step that will provide a cyber - Shri A.K.Thakur
law framework for e-commerce to develop and Executive Director (Operations & Systems), UTI
Approach to E-Commerce by Banks. enrichment and fulfilment it provided at the end of
- Shri K.Seshasayee the day.
Chief General Manager, SBI
IDRBT wishes to place on record its sincere thanks
Approach to E-Commerce by Insurance Sector. to CMC Ltd., the Ministry of IT, New Delhi, Reserve
- Shri S. Krishnan Bank of India, the distinguished speakers, special
Manager-EDP, LIC of India, Mumbai invitees and all the delegates and their sponsors for
Session 3 was a Panel Discussion headed by their contribution and cooperation in making this
Shri.S.R. Mittal, Chief General Manager, RBI. Other seminar a grand success.
members on the panel were: Other Seminars and Events
Dr.P.G. Sarang, I.T. Consultant,Shri J. Satyanarayana, NetCom’99
IAS, Secretary, Ministry of IT, Govt. of Andhra
Pradesh and Dr. Krishnaprasad, Addl. General IDRBT joined hands with the Management
Manager, CMC Ltd and Dr.A. Saxena, Faculty IDRBT. Development Institute (MDI), Gurgaon and the India
Council of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics
Engineers Inc.(IEEE) to organise an International
Seminar on E-Commerce Opportunities and
Challenges in India, on October 29, 1999 at Hotel
Le Meridien, New Delhi.

This one-day seminar sought to highlight the

managerial, organizational and infrastructural issues
for enabling secure e-commerce. The delegates
were: from Banks and Financial Institutions,
Manufacturing and Distribution Enterprises, Internet
Service Providers, experts from I.T and
Telecommunications, Management Consultants and
academicians from Engineering and Management
Institutes.
A view of the fully packed auditorium ... during the
inaugural session of the National Seminar. Shri. P.V. Jayakrishnan, Secretary, Ministry of
Information Technology, Government of India,
Dr. Sarang made a brief presentation on Java and
delivered the Inaugural Address. The eminent
Shri. J. Satyanarayana shared with the audience the
speakers at the seminar were: Prof. Dennis Longley
success stories and massive re-orientation efforts in
from QUT, Australia, Prof. Devi Singh, Director, MDI,
IT implementation in A.P Govt.
Dr.V.P. Gulati, Director, IDRBT, Prof.M.P. Jaiswal and
There was a lot of useful interaction with each speaker Prof. K.B.C. Saxena from MDI. Prominent leaders
immediately after his or her speech, in all the three from the I.T. industry were also on the panel and
sessions. The distinguished moderators made the made presentations on key issues in the emerging
sessions lively, memorable and highly rewarding e-commerce scenario.
by bringing their individual excellence and
Prof. Longley's Visit
technical expertise to bear on the entire
proceedings. Prof. Dennis Longley is the former Head of the
Information Security Research Centre at Queensland
The National Seminar concluded on a positive note
University, Brisbane, Australia. He is one of the
when Shri.S.R. Mittal echoed the feelings of all the
leading researchers and consultants in e-commerce
delegates, by saying "We Indians are second to
and security. He has authored many books on
none in the world as far as I.T implementation is
Information Security. He was here on a short visit to
concerned and very shortly, we will see the financial
IDRBT. During his visit, he addressed the participants
sector handling e-commerce, RTGS and a whole lot
of the programme on Payment Systems and Security
of anywhere banking facilities, with utmost ease and
Technology. He also held wide-ranging discussions
optimal security and reliability".
with the Director and Faculty of IDRBT. During the
By all accounts this was a wonderful event, highly discussions, the possibility of QUT and IDRBT
appreciated by all the delegates for the way it was working in collaboration was voiced and
organised, the impact it created and the sense of explored. Plans are afoot to make formal
arrangements for exchange of faculty, research teams with the facilities, activities and on-going projects
and knowledge on a regular basis between these of the Institute.
two institutions.
Managing Borders with Novell
Intel inside IDRBT
A team from Novell made a presentation on December
A team of professionals working on Security in Intel 14,1999 on Border Manager Enterprise Edition
Corporation visited IDRBT on October 27, 1999. The (BMEE). They spoke at length on their efforts to
team led by Mr. Lee J.Hirsch, Director, Strategic create a value added bundle, which resulted in BMEE
Marketing from California included Security Architects which comprises a firewall, authentication, VPN
management services, caching services for
Mr.David Aucsmith and Mr.Anand Rajan from Oregon
comprehensive security along with Novell Directory
and two marketing executives from Hong Kong. They
Services (NDS) and single sign-on facility.
made a presentation on Security Technologies on
the Intel Architecture Platforms, which was followed INFINET News
by a discussion on the developments that are taking
n Out of the 450 VSATs proposed to be
place in this field in various parts of the world. We
installed, 379 have already been
could see a lot of common ground during the commissioned as of now (30/01/2000).
discussions. The interaction - exchange of views and
n Most of the banks have already started using
points of technicality and perceptions on
the network for FTP.
developments in security technology - was very
much beneficial and reinforcing for both IDRBT and n Messaging backbone has been implemented
Intel. on INFINET and various banks are using it by
configuring thin clients to access our Mail
CMC Ltd. on APSWAN Servers at the hub.
On 29th November 1999 CMC Ltd made a n Department of Telecom has approved the
presentation on the Network Architecture and Design leased line network, which will be seamlessly
for the Andhra Pradesh State Wide Area Network integrated with INFINET.
(APSWAN), which has provided direct connectivity n The Report of the Sub-group on Message
to all the districts in the state with the State Formats has been accepted by RBI. A copy
Secretariat and the Chief Minister's office. The role of the report has been circulated to all the
played by the CMC Ltd., and the roadmap for the CUG members.
future in this project were also described. This
seminar provided the opportunity to discuss the n Individual MoUs between IDRBT and the CUG
various options available for effective networking for members on INFINET Service are being
the financial sector and the nitty-gritty involved. signed.
n The committee on Structured Messaging has
IIB and IDRBT Get Closer
invited technical proposals for a suitable
On December 28, 1999, Shri.R.H.Sarma, the CEO Messaging Solution from reputed vendors. A
of Indian Institute of Bankers, Mumbai, visited IDRBT. few proposals have been received and they
He was accompanied by Shri.P. Balachandran, are being processed.
Director , IIB. The primary purpose of the visit was
n Individual banks can plan for deriving the
to explore ways of closer cooperation between
maximum advantage through devising
IIB and IDRBT to achieve the common goal of
applications of their own by creating a Virtual
improving the academic excellence, awareness
Private Network (VPN) for them on the
standards, operational efficiency and
INFINET.
technological competence of Bankers in our
country. During the course of the discussions, the Training Programmes on VSAT and
need for and possibility of preparing a Communication
comprehensive Technology Based Training Module
LEVEL 1
for Top Executives in Banks came up. It was decided
that this could be looked into with utmost Between September and December 1999, four more
seriousness and urgency. Later on, the guests were programmes were conducted for VSAT Users (Level
taken around the IDRBT campus to familiarise them 1). With this the number of training programmes
conducted so far, under this category, has gone up n UDP Port Scanning
to 22, covering around 660 participants drawn from
n UDP Flooding
the Banking Sector. These programmes are aimed
at providing the necessary inputs to the officers of n Ping of Death
banks for operating and managing the remote VSAT n Smurf attack
sites and guidelines for basic troubleshooting. The
programme content and design have been suitably The tools for detecting each of these attacks are
being developed and tested. We would be deploying
modified to cater to the needs of a heterogeneous
this NIDS on our network for testing at various stages.
group of participants.
This project is expected to be completed by May
Research and Development 2000.

Multimedia Data Warehousing and Data Mining

An information kiosk with a touch screen monitor Data Mining for Analysing Credit Card
has been installed in the Reception Lounge of the Transactions: The first project that we undertook in
Institute. The user can use his finger to navigate this area was successfully completed. The limited
through the web pages to view the contents data we got for this purpose, from a public sector
(information made available literally at finger tips). bank, was quite useful for our research. We could
This kiosk provides a lot of useful information to the use pre-processing techniques, scrubbing and
visitors about the Institute, its facilities, projects, cleaning, clustering and classification. We could
programmes and other activities. It will also provide analyse the data using Pattern Recognition
a lot of audiovisual material on conferences, seminars Workbench system. The results obtained gave us a
deep insight into the spending patterns of the
and other important events conducted or sponsored
cardholders.
by IDRBT.
We are now getting into the second project in Data
Mining - Pattern Discovery and Data Mining in
Retail Banking with a view to finding out a suitable
Data Mining approach for large-scale decision
support systems for Retail Banking needs.

Inventory and Analysis of Banking

Software Products
We have provided a comprehensive Inventory of
Banking Software Products available as of now in
our website at http://www.idrbt.com. The
information provided is classified into needs of banks
at various operational levels and the software
His Excellency, Dr.C. Rangarajan keenly observing the
features of the Kiosk being demonstrated by products that are presently available to meet those
Shri. M.V. Sivakumaran, Faculty, IDRBT. requirements. Whatever information we could gather
Prof.D.B. Phatak, IIT, Mumbai and
from the bankers and the vendors has been
Shri.K.R. Ganapathy, Advisor, IDRBT are also seen.
scrutinized and presented.
Payments System and Security IDRBT has not made any evaluation of its own of
any of the products listed in the inventory for want
Intrusion Detection System : The Institute is
of complete information about them and evaluation
developing a prototype of a Network based Intrusion copies thereof. Therefore, the vendors and their
Detection System (NIDS). This System will be able products listed on our website do not carry any
to detect the following types of attacks on the certificate or recommendation or guarantee from
Network: IDRBT regarding their quality and/or performance.

n Land attack Banks and Financial Institutions are advised to be

guided by their own procedures for evaluation and
n TCP Syn attack
selection in dealing with the vendors and their
n TCP Port Scanning products listed in the inventory.
Inputs or queries in this regard can be sent to
Shri.V.Visweswar, Faculty.
(email:viswar@idrbt.ernet.in)

Executive Development
Programmes
Data Mining in the Banking Industry
(October 4-9, 1999)
This programme was organised with the aim of
promoting technical and operational awareness for
implementing Data Warehousing and Data Mining
technologies in the banking industry. Prof. V. Rama Dr. A.Vasudevan, (centre) clarifying a point during the
Rao, Vice-Chancellor, University of Hyderabad and inaugural session.. He is flanked by Dr.V.P. Gulati and
Dr.R.B. Barman, RBI delivered keynote addresses Shri. R.S. Bakkannavar, Regional Director, AP, RBI and
Shri.S.R.Mittal, CGM, RBI, Central Office
in the inaugural session. There were 28 participants, and Dr.A.Saxena, Programme Coordinator.
including AGMs, DGMs and GMs from banks. A good
number of experts in the field of DW and DM were 13 eminent speakers and professionals were drawn
invited to address the participants, apart from our from various parts of the country and from abroad
own faculty.
apart from our own faculty, to address the participants
on the issues involved. Notable among them was
Prof. Dennis Longley, who came all the way from
Queensland University, Australia. (Read more about
him on page 4 in this issue.)

The topics covered were: Evaluation of Payment

Systems, Banking Technology, RTGS and Cross
Border Payments, Electronic Payment Systems,
Smart Cards, Digital Signatures and Certification,
Risk Management in Payment Systems, Legal and
Regulatory Framework for Electronic Payments etc.
At the end of the programme the participants made
presentations on Adverse Effects of Security on
Prof. V. Rama Rao, Vice-Chancellor, University of Hyderabad,
Customers of Internet Banking, Financial Networking,
delivering the Inaugural Address...
Seated to his left are : Dr. S. Sudarshan, IIT, Mumbai, Money in the Third Millennium and Electronic Funds
Dr. R.B. Barman, Dr. V.P. Gulati, Prof. A.K. Pujari, UoH and Transfer.
Dr. A.K. Nag from RBI.
Forthcoming Programmes
The major thrust was on imparting technical know-
Special Programme for Bank of Maharashtra
how in a practical manner. At the end of the
programme, the participants made presentations on Bank of Maharashtra had requested IDRBT to
this subject like: Organisational Issues and Policies conduct a Special Executive Development
in DW and DM, Bank Strategy, New Areas for Programme on Emerging Trends in Technology for
Advancement etc. their top executives. We are planning to conduct this
one-week programme for two batches in February
Payment Systems and Secure 2000.
Technology (October 25 - November 3,
1999) Training Programmes on Messaging
Systems
Dr.A.Vasudevan, Executive Director, RBI inaugurated
MS Exchange
the Programme. There were 18 participants; most of
them AGMs and DGMs from Banks and there was At the request of a few Banks, which have selected
one from the Central Bank of Sri Lanka. As many as MS Exchange as their messaging solution, we have
planned to conduct four training programmes on MS Prior to this he was a Senior Lecturer for almost 7
Exchange, in January - February 2000. years at the Department of Mathematics and
Computer Applications at Regional Engineering
The Banks which have opted for this programme are: College, Tiruchirappalli, Tamilnadu. He has obtained
Allahabad Bank, Andhra Bank, Bank of Baroda, his M.Sc. and Ph.D. degrees from the Indian Institute
Oriental Bank of Commerce, Vijaya Bank and Reserve of Technology, Kharagpur in 1987 and 1994
Bank of India. respectively. He has visited and delivered lectures,
on invitation, at several Institutions in India, USA
IDRBT is willing to conduct similar programmes for
(1998, 1990) and Canada (1998). He is currently
other Banks on MS Exchange, Lotus Notes and Novell
working on Payment Systems, System Optimisation
Groupwise to meet their specific needs and to help
and Fuzzy Control.
them take-off faster in the messaging environment.
Join IDRBT as a Faculty!
Further queries in this regard may be addressed to
Ms. V. Radha, Faculty. The Institute is on the lookout for high profile
(e-mail: Radha@idrbt.ernet.in) professionals from I.T and Banking, with academic
and research inclination to work on some of the
Facilities at the Institute advanced areas such as:
The New Computer Lab 1. Financial Network and Application
Architecture.

2. Payment Systems and Security Management.

3. Multimedia.

4. Data Warehousing, Data Mining, Risk

Management, Artificial Neural Networks etc.

Positions: We have openings for the posts of

Faculty, Visiting Faculty and Faculty on Deputation
to guide and undertake the development, research
and training activities.

A partial view of the New Lab

Profile: Candidates should have a Ph.D. in Computer
Science or closely related area with a very good
IDRBT has set up a new and spacious Computer Lab academic record and relevant experience.
for providing hands - on training during Executive Outstanding candidates with Post Graduation in
Development Programmes. The new lab has been Computer Science and relevant experience will also
carefully designed in such a way that the faculty can be considered.
move freely along the aisles and rows to pay personal
attention to each participant, when required. The The Institute will also consider Professional Bankers
new lab has a higher capacity of 40 computer with relevant experience and qualification for
systems when compared to the 24 systems we had deputation to the Institute.
in the old lab.
For more details visit our website:
The Personnel Desk http://www.idrbt.com

Faculty Interested candidates may forward their applications

giving details about age, qualifications, experience,
Dr. V.N. Sastry has joined IDRBT in November 1999.
published papers/books etc., to the Director, IDRBT.

Institute for Development and Research in Banking Technology

(Established by Reserve Bank of India)
Castle Hills, Road No. 1, Masab Tank, Hyderabad - 500 057, India.
EPABX : 3534981-83 (3 lines), Fax : (040) - 3535157, 3536361
e-mail : publisher@idrbt.com , Website:http//www.idrbt.com