Patna, May 18: Chief minister Nitish Kumar today lambasted public sector banks for “rampant corruption” in their rank and file, much to the embarrassment of the bosses of four such establishments who had gathered at the bankers’ meet here.
“There is rampant corruption in issuing Kisan Credit Card (KCC) to farmers and houses under Indira Awaas Yojana to the poor. Middlemen in collusion with corrupt bank officials are deceiving the people in the name of the KCC and Indira Awaas Yojana and making illegal earnings on a big scale,” Nitish said at the 36th state-level bankers’ meet.
In attendance were the chairmen-cum-managing directors of State Bank of India, Central Bank, UCO Bank and Allahabad Bank besides the central secretary, financial services, Sashikant Sharma, and representatives from the Reserve Bank of India and Nabard.
The chief minister cited the example of the Punjab National Bank branch at Muzaffarpur. A police raid on the branch in December last year had yielded several fake KCCs issued in the name of persons who were not even aware of getting the facilities.
“Investigations revealed that the bank functionaries were hand-in-glove with middlemen. They (bank officials), working in tandem with the middlemen, persuade the farmers to pay bribe on the plea that the government will waive off the loan in a few years,” Nitish said.
“Trust is the most important asset for banks. But people are losing trust in banks due to irregularities in securing KCCs and houses under Indira Awaas Yojana. It is a very disturbing development,” the chief minister said.
Nitish inaugurated the function with a jibe. “I am unable to understand how semi-literate people (read middlemen) discover the loopholes in the rules framed by the banking experts and IAS officials to exploit and make money at the cost of genuine beneficiaries,” he said.
Asked about the chief minister’s charges, SBI CMD Pratip Chaudhuri said: “We are so far not aware of the irregularities. But we will surely take corrective measures in the light of the CM’s remarks.”
