With the hapless investors reeling under the fraudulent money circulation schemes, the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MoCA) will organise an awareness campaign here on Friday to educate investors.
While the Economic Offence Wing (EOW) of the Crime Branch of the Odisha Police has unleashed crackdown on several fraudulent chit fund companies, it has already registered 300 odd cases while arresting 315 persons, including the bosses of Seashore, Ashore, Swastik India and Flourish India. The Commissionerate of Police of Twin City of Bhubaneswar and Cuttack has also taken to task another big money circulation company, Artha Tatwa.
The State Government has set up a Rs 300-crore corpus fund for the small and genuine investors who have lost their hard-earned money in the money circulation schemes.
So, Friday’s conference takes centre-stage in view of the prevailing situation in the State. Union Minister of Corporate Affairs Sachin Pilot will address the gathering.
Officials of the State Government including the Secretaries of Finance, Home, Industries and Commerce Departments, the chief of the Crime Branch, top cops of the CBI, representatives of SEBI, RBI and Utkal Chamber of Commerce & Industry, along with those of ICAI, ICSI and ICWAI will be present at the conference.
Pilot will be interacting with the top brass of the State Criminal Investigation Department and Departments of Home and Finance and other senior officials to assess the situation in the State, said sources. MoCA Secretary Naved Masood will also be present at the meeting, which will hold a session with investors and general public to educate them, provide suitable orientation and also to understand their problems and grievances.
The MoCA has already initiated investigation of 87 companies following complaints against them for floating fraudulent investment schemes. For further crackdown, the Ministry has asked the States to initiate action against such practices, besides stepping up surveillance and awareness campaigns.
The SEBI has already stepped up surveillance over the fraudulent companies and the MoCA is spearheading a series of awareness and education programmes all over the country. In this backdrop, the daylong meeting is going to be held at Hotel Mayfair, where freewheeling interactions would take place, said sources.