EMN
Dimapur, APRIL 12
The ACAUT Nagaland has warned the financial institutions, especially private banks that it will not tolerate discriminatory policies against locals and appealed to all the PMEGP selectees who have faced harassment from the banks to contact its officials, saying the ACAUT is ready to expose dirty-dealings to the public, RBI, Finance Ministry, and Banking Ombudsmen.
“The unethical practices of ICICI Bank, making flimsy excuses and denying the right to a certain local entrepreneur in availing PMEGP loan (Prime Minister’s Employment Generation Programme) despite being selected and sanctioned Rs. 22 lakhs under the said scheme are reprehensible. Even more condemnable is, KVIC (khadi and Village Industry Commission), knowing the fact that ICICI bank has never entertained any local entrepreneurs in the last 7 years should still empanel ICICI Bank as loan dispensing agency.
It is fishy that KVIC should still patronize ICICI bank despite the latter being openly hostile to the entrepreneurial community,” Media cell, ACAUT Nagaland in press note said.
“KVIC even played mischief by refusing to allot a different bank to the said entrepreneur even when he repeatedly complained to the officials regarding the unprofessional and sick attitude of the ICICI bank. After making him run around for three months, the ICICI Bank in total disregard to the commitment, offered to pay the insulting amount of Rs. 1 Lakh out of the total 22 Lakhs. Only after the intervention of ACAUT Nagaland did the ICICI bank finally release Rs. 10 Lakhs.”
The ACAUT said, another shocking episode is the manner in which the ICICI bank operates. “Flouting all banking norms, the bank does not offer Cash Credit (CC) facility to its customers. ACAUT suspects that the bank is operating simply to collect deposits, including possible benami transactions, while foregoing its responsibility to customers.”
This is just one example out of the thousands of cases all over Nagaland where the local entrepreneurial community is suffering at the hands of banks, the ACAUT said and asked the government to kick out all banks from the state which are not performing for the social sector as part of their corporate responsibility.
