AIBEA seeks criminal action against Mallya, other ‘defaulters’

PANAJI: The All India Bank Employeesassociation (AIBEA) has demanded that criminal action be initiated against around 8,000 loan defaulters including beleaguered businessman Vijay Mallya.

“There should be criminal action against 8,000 odd loan defaulters including liquor baron Vijay Mallya for failure to repay the loan amounts... pegged at Rs 80,000 crore,” AIBEA general secretary C V Venkatchalam told reporters here on Sunday.

He was in the coastal state to attend the 18th conference of Goa Bank Employees Association (GBEA), a union affiliated to AIBEA. “Black money cannot be weed out through demonetisation.

For that you require stringent anti-corruption, antibribery and amendments to the existing recovery laws,” he said.

Venkatchalam questioned why is government not disclosing the names of these black money holders and loan defaulters?

“Why no criminal action is initiated? Why just civil case against Mallya?” he sought to know. The Association has resolved that the Centre should announce the names of loan defaulters.

The banking union has also decided to call for nationwide protest against demonetisation, if the Centre fails to make available the adequate currency in the banks and recalibrate the existing ATM machines.

“The demonetisation move has led to financial chaos.

Government has failed completely in its move. Common man is suffering and bankers are feeling the heat. People have money but are not in position to withdraw. Chaotic situation is prevailing at the bank branches and this is unbearable for customers as well as bank employees and officers,” he said.

Venkatchalam also claimed that as against the total requirement of the currency at national level, only 28 per cent has come to bank since November 8.

He stated that in a letter written to Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, they have demanded that RBI should take immediate steps to supply adequate cash to all banks and daily announce the details of the notes it supplies.

“Failing which, we would be forced to hold massive agitations,” he said.

Talking about the move to go cashless, Venkatchalam said the country cannot be cashless overnight considering that 90 per cent of its economic transactions are cash based.

“India is not developed to that level that we should go for cashless system. The move is basically to help the corporate sector and other business people involved in technological advances,” he said. Moving another resolution, the Association has raised strong objection to government attempt to privatise the public sector banks and further amalgamation of banks for global competition. HYDERABAD: In a bid to bring more workers from unorganised sector under the health insurance scheme, the Employees State Insurance Corporation has increased the monthly wage limit to Rs 21,000, Labour Minister Bandaru Dattatreya said here on Sunday.

“Earlier coverage under ESIC scheme was enhanced to Rs 15,000 in 2010. Now, government has taken a decision to hike the coverage from Rs 15,000 to Rs 21,000,” he said.

He said that the government is also strengthening the health infrastructure for the benefit of workers.

The upward increase in revision would add about 35 lakh new members to the ESIC pool, Dattatreya said.

At present, 2.14 crore persons are enrolled under this scheme. A notification in this regard has been issued on October 6, 2016 and invites suggestions and objections from all stakeholders.

The government is also strengthening the health infrastructure by upgrading dispensaries into six-bedded hospitals, the minister said.

10-bedded hospitals would also be upgraded into 30-bedded depending on the strength of the insured persons, Dattatreya said, adding, now ESIC and ESI both have 1,450 dispensaries.

The Union minister said he has written to all Chief Ministers to provide land for construction of six-bedded hospitals.