Punjab State Cooperative Bank on Monday made it clear that Punjab and Maharashtra Cooperative (PMC) Bank, in the news for fraudulently extending loans to Housing Development and Infrastructure Limited (HDIL), has no relation with the Punjab Cooperative Bank and District Central Cooperative Banks working in the state of Punjab.
“Punjab and Maharashtra Cooperative Bank (PMC), which has imperilled deposits of numerous customers, is an urban cooperative bank working in the state of Maharashtra which has no relation with the Punjab State Cooperative Bank and District Central Cooperative Banks working in the State of Punjab,” said Punjab State Cooperative Bank Limited managing director Dr SK Batish.
He said that the Punjab State Cooperative Bank Limited, Chandigarh, and District Central Cooperative Banks are serving the people of Punjab with its network of more than 800 branches and are in sound financial health.
“Some District Central Cooperative Banks are more than a century old. These banks are catering to the socio-economic needs of more than nine lakh farmers of the State. Around 39 lakh depositors and 16 lakh borrowers are getting banking services from these banks,” he said.
Reassuring the customers of the state’s Cooperative Banks, Dr Batish said that the Punjab State Cooperative Bank and the District Central Cooperative Banks are having a total business of Rs 34,000 crore.
Agricultural loans, worth Rs 9,200 crore, have been provided to the farmers of the State, he said adding that the District Central Cooperative Banks are among the biggest agriculture lenders of the State.
It is reiterated that the Punjab State Cooperative Bank and all the District Central Cooperative Banks in the state of Punjab adhere to the norms fixed by the regulators, that is the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), and National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) vis-Ã -vis Capital to Risk (Weighted) Assets Ratio (CRAR), Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) and Statutory Liquidity Ratio (SLR) etc.
Dr Batish exhorted the depositors and borrowers of the Cooperative Banks of Punjab to transact with the bank in a fearless manner on consistent basis.