BHUBANESWAR: Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi on Monday started the refund process for depositors of the Urban Cooperative Bank, Bhubaneswar by handing over cheques to nine of the 117 depositors selected in the first phase.
The refund process began on the occasion of Utkal Gourab Madhusudan Das’ birth anniversary. Madhu Babu is considered to be the pioneer of the cooperative movement in the state. A total of 9,537 depositors, whose money had been locked in the bank after it closure in 2015, will receive Rs 20.96 crore. On the first day, 117 depositors received Rs 2.80 crore.
The Bhubaneswar Urban Cooperative Bank was shut down in 2015 due to prolonged operational issues and poor financial management. At the time of closure, 11,673 depositors were left with Rs 33.87 crore to be refunded. Meanwhile, 2,709 depositors have received Rs 12.78 crore but those with deposits of over Rs 1 lakh are waiting for their refund.
After taking office as chief minister, Majhi decided to refund the remaining depositors’ money to restore trust in the cooperative banking system.
Around 17,859 depositors of four urban cooperative banks located in Dhenkanal, Chhatrapur, Aska and Bhanjanagar will also get back their deposits amounting to `6 crore.
Paying tribute to Madhu Babu, the chief minister said around 50 lakh farmers in Odisha are associated with the cooperative movement. He emphasised the government’s goal to integrate all farmers of the state with cooperatives by 2036.
“To achieve this, the state aims to establish one primary agriculture cooperative society (PACS) or large-sized Adivasi multi-purpose cooperative society (LAMPS) in each panchayat,” he added.
Majhi further informed that the government has provided seed money of `5 lakh to each of the new PACS.
On the occasion, the state government also signed an MoU with IRMA School under the Tribhuvan Sahkari University, Anand in Gujarat. The MoU aims to empower cooperative institutions in the state by providing knowledge partnership for their effective management.