Balasore, Sept. 5: An amount of Rs 3.24 lakh was found missing from a cooperative bank at Kupari in Balasore.

The amount was kept in the locker of the Kupari branch of Balasore Bhadrak Central Cooperative Bank. The issue came to the fore when the branch reopened last Saturday after holidays for three consecutive days. On Saturday the locker was opened to advance a cash loan to a self-help group.

The locker was not tampered with. Branch manager Dayanidhi Behera lodged a missing report with the police. Behera has indicated involvement of the accountant and the cashier. “We have received a complaint from the Kupari branch regarding the missing of Rs 3.24 lakh from the locker. A team from the head office in Balasore, accompanied by the zonal manager and the development officer, inspected the branch and conducted a preliminary inquiry into the incident,” said Jiban Pradip Dash, president of the Balasore Bhadrak Central Cooperative Bank.

“The locker is operated by a dual-key system. One key is supposed to be with the cashier and the other with the branch manager. However, in this case, we find the involvement of the cashier, the accountant and the manager. We will recover the missing amount from them and initiate departmental action against the guilty. A report has been lodged with the police,” he said.

The concerned bank had drawn Rs 3 lakh from its Khaira branch on Tuesday for advancing the loan to the self-help group, based at Barajodi in Khaira block.