BHUBANESWAR: The Odisha government on Saturday removed three major private sector banks from its list of empanelled banks, citing poor performance in flagship government schemes and unsatisfactory general banking parameters over the last two financial years.
The banks, which have been removed from the list of empanelled banks are HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank and Axis Bank. The Finance department, in a letter issued by principal secretary Saswat Mishra, directed all state government departments, directorates, heads of departments (HoDs), agencies, public sector undertakings (PSUs), societies, and universities to immediately close all savings, current or other running accounts maintained with these three banks.
They have been instructed to transfer the balances to accounts in other empanelled banks without delay. The letter, however, clarified that existing fixed or term deposits in these banks need not be closed prematurely, as doing so could lead to a loss of interest. Instead, these deposits should be shifted to other empanelled banks upon maturity, along with accrued interest, it stated.
The departments were warned that any non-compliance will be viewed seriously. The Finance department has also asked all administrative departments to ensure wide circulation of the directive among all state government-supported entities under their control and compliance.