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The Maharashtra government has suggested a merger of the scam-hit Punjab & Maharashtra Cooperative (PMC) Bank with the MSC Bank in a bid a provide relief to depositors of the troubled lender, state minister Jayant Patil said on 5 December.
If need be, the state government will speak to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on the issue of merger of the Maharashtra State Cooperative (MSC) and PMC banks, he said.
The PMC Bank has been put under restrictions by the RBI, after an alleged Rs 4,355-crore scam came to light, following which the deposit withdrawal was initially capped at Rs 1,000, causing panic and distress among depositors.
The withrawal limit has been raised in a staggered manner to Rs 50,000 now.
At least eight depositors, who had high sums of money stuck with the bank, died in the last couple of months, including one who committed suicide.
Patil, who has earlier been finance minister of the state, said the MSC Bank’s health is good and there should be no problem in case the PMC Bank is merged in it.
The Maharashtra NCP chief also said that the process may take around one-and-a-half months to complete.
The PMC Bank, which has around 16 lakh depositors, was placed under an RBI administrator on September 23 for six months due to massive under-reporting of dud loans.
The bank, over a long period of time, had given more than Rs 6,700 crore in loans to the Housing Development and Infrastructure Ltd (HDIL), which is 73 per cent of its total advances, and which turned sour with a shift in the fortunes of the now bankrupt company.
Twelve people, including top officials of the PMC Bank and HDIL, have so far been arrested by Mumbai Police's Economic Offences Wing (EOW) in connection with the scam.
The EOW suspects a nexus between some of the accused and HDIL, whose mammoth loan defaults are said to have caused a liquidity crisis at the bank, leading to appointment of administrator by RBI and restrictions on withdrawal of funds.
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