BHUBANESWAR: The Right to Food Campaign (RFC) has urged the Cooperation department and the Odisha Gramin Bank to issue a standard operating procedure (SOP) for rural branches, including doorstep banking, simplifying nomination procedures and ensuring humane handling of legal heir claims.
The appeal has been made in view of the recent ‘proof of death’ walk taken out by a tribal man, Jitu Munda, where he carried the skeletal remains of his sister to the Odisha Gramin Bank branch in Malliposhi of Keonjhar district, as evidence of her death.
A four-member team of the RFC had on May 8 visited the Dianali village, Odisha Gramin Bank branch at Malliposhi and the Patna community health centre (CHC) in the district, made an assessment on the case and brought out a fact-finding report.
The report suggested that the Odisha Gramin Bank should order an internal inquiry to examine the conduct of its Malliposhi branch in this case, including the failure of the branch manager, the cashier, the messenger and the Bank Mitra to take any cognisance of Jitu Munda’s repeated visits over several months.
The report further questioned as to why the death of Jitu’s sister Kalara Munda was not formally recorded and reported by the ASHA, the anganwadi worker or the local panchayat, between January 26 and April 27. It demanded that an inquiry be conducted on why the death certificate was not issued earlier and given only two days after the incident at the bank.