I remember the time in India when customers who went to cash a cheque at their local banks, had to first line up to present the cheque to a bank teller and were then given a token to take to a different teller to get their cash.

Fortunately things have changed for the better now. Indian banks are now almost at par with foreign banks when it comes to service. Non resident Indians living abroad often open accounts with Indian banks such as The State Bank of India and ICICI bank that have set up foreign branches abroad to attract NRIs. 

ICICI bank vigorously advertises to attract non resident Indians to get their accounts.

The reality is that while some banks will go all out and outspend each other to get customers they don't seem to be putting enough thought into customer service.

Just check the internet and Nri's seem to have quite a few complaints about bank customer service.  

The competition from foreign banks within India though has resulted in improvements for Indians in the banking sector.

Banks in India now offer services to their customers that are not only comparable to western banks but also some services that are not offered in the west, such as home banking.

Home banking facility is one special customer service that banks in India offer.

My Axis bank account for instance allows me to telephone my bank in India when I want to cash a personal cheque while I am in India.

During my recent visit to India I used this home banking facility and called the bank on three different occasions to cash my personal cheque. Once the bank gets a call for home banking from a customer they send the cash to your residence, you accept the cash and hand over your personal cheque to the bank employee.