The Maharashtra government has suggested the amalgamation of the scam-hit Punjab & Maharashtra Cooperative (PMC) Bank with the MSC Bank to offer relief to depositors of the troubled lender said state minister Jayant Patil.
If there is a need the state government will have a word with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on the issue of merger of Maharashtra State Cooperative (MSC) and PMC banks, he said.
“I spoke to the MSC Bank chairman day before yesterday. We have suggested the MSC Bank to try to merge the PMC bank with it so that the poorest of its depositors get relief,” Patil said.
The PMC Bank is put under several restrictions by the RBI, after an alleged fraud of Rs 4,355 crore came into notice following which the deposit withdrawal was initially barred at Rs 1,000, creatin panic and distress among depositors.
The withdrawal limit has now been upgraded gradually to Rs 50,000.
Allegedly, eight depositors troubled with the struck savings have died in the last couple of months, including one who committed suicide.
“We want to assure the PMC Bank depositors that the government stands with them. The merger of the two banks will definitely help small depositors,” the minister said.
Patil, who has former finance minister of the state, said the MSC Bank’s health is in better shape and there will be no problem in case the PMC Bank is merged into it.
The Maharashtra NCP chief also said that the merger may take one-and-a-half months of time to complete.
The PMC Bank, that has around 16 lakh depositors, was put under an RBI administrator on September 23 for a period of six months due to huge under-reporting of bad loans.
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