RRBs: 'Controlling Office' Renamed to 'Regional Office'
No longer current — withdrawn, no replacement on file yet
Source: Reserve Bank of India · RBI/2008-2009/468 · issued 04 May 2009 · ~1 min read
Quick answerRBI has directed all Regional Rural Banks to replace the term 'Controlling Office' with 'Regional Office' in their branch licensing master circular, following a government decision based on a committee's recommendations on HR policy for RRBs.
What changed
The Government of India, acting on recommendations from the Committee to formulate a Comprehensive Human Resource Policy for RRBs, decided to change the nomenclature. Consequently, RBI has instructed RRBs to replace the words 'Controlling Office' with 'Regional Office' in paragraphs 2 and 2.3 of the Master Circular on Branch Licensing dated July 1, 2008.
What it means for you
This is a straightforward nomenclature change that aligns RRB terminology with standard banking usage. For banks, it simplifies internal and external communications by adopting a more familiar term. No operational or licensing procedures are affected; only the label changes in official documents.
Historical instruction — do not use for current compliance. This is what was required at the time; it no longer reflects current RBI requirements. If no replacement rule is linked above, that only means none is recorded on our register yet — it does not prove no later applicable rule exists. Confirm on the official RBI source below.
What banks were required to do at the time
Update all internal and external documents, forms, and circulars referencing 'Controlling Office' to 'Regional Office'.
Ensure branch licensing records and related communications reflect the new terminology.
Inform all relevant staff and stakeholders about the change to avoid confusion.
repealed_by — Consolidation of Regulations — Withdrawal of circulars (28 Nov 2025)
Status change: withdrawn05 Aug 2026, 04:00 IST
Built from our lineage records — each fact carries its provenance; missing history simply is not shown (never guessed).
Does this change affect any licensing procedures or requirements?
No, this is purely a nomenclature change. All existing procedures, requirements, and guidelines remain the same; only the term 'Controlling Office' is replaced with 'Regional Office'.
Which specific document is being updated?
The Master Circular on Branch Licensing for RRBs dated July 1, 2008 (reference RPCD.CO.RRB.No.BL.BC.07/03.05.90-A/2008-09).
📜 This document’s life story (2 recorded events, each backed by RBI’s own words)
📜 Read the original circular — full text as issued by RBI
RBI/2008-2009/468
RPCD.CO.RRB.BC. No.101 /03.05.90-A /2008-09
May 4, 2009
All Regional Rural Banks
Dear Sir,
"Controlling Office" renamed as "Regional Office"- RRBs
Please refer to paragraph 2 and 2.3 of our Master Circular on Branch Licensing -Regional Rural Banks (RRBs) RPCD. .RRB. No.BL. BC.07/03.05.90-A/2008-09 (RBI/2008-09/36) July 1, 2008.
2. We advise that Government of India have, while considering the various recommendations of the Committee to formulate Comprehensive Human Resource Policy for RRBs, decided to change the nomenclature of "Controlling Office" as "Regional Office". Accordingly the words "Controlling Office" referred to in paragraph 2 and 2.3 of our Master Circular on Branch Licensing - Regional Rural Banks(RRBs) RPCD.CO.RRB.No.BL.BC.07/03.05.90-A/2008-09 dated July 1, 2008 may be replaced by the words "Regional Office".
Yours faithfully,
(C.K.Shah)
Deputy General Manager
Reproduced for reference with acknowledgment — Source: Reserve Bank of India · RBI/2008-2009/468 · issued 04 May 2009. The plain-English explanation above is BankPulse’s own independent summary.
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BankPulse Compliance Evidence Pack — generated 05 Aug 2026 · status cross-checked against RBI’s official withdrawal register (refreshed weekly). Official RBI source: https://www.rbi.org.in/Scripts/NotificationUser.aspx?Id=4965&Mode=0 — Plain-English summary by BankPulse (bankpulse.ai), reviewed by our expert reviewer, CA Amit Jain. Independent platform, not affiliated with the Reserve Bank of India; is our own plain-English paraphrase, not RBI’s original wording.
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