by Saima Bhat
SRINAGAR: Of late the state’s financial premier institute Jammu and Kashmir Bank that is in news after the sacking of its CMD and Anti-corruption bureau investigation into its mismanagement and corruption, will soon have a dual control as the government is mulling options for appointing a separate chairman and a separate managing director for the bank, Chief Secretary BVR Subramanyam said on Wednesday.
During first of its kind interaction in Srinagar, the governor Satya Pal Malik, his four advisors and the chief secretary met the media in SKICC auditorium today where the governor briefed about the developmental works his administration did in last one year since he assumed the charge of the state.
Chief Secretary said that the RBI has appointed an interim chairman and a search committee of top banking professionals will be constituted soon for recommending suitable candidates for appointment of chairman and managing director for Jammu and Kashmir Bank separately.
“The Jammu and Kashmir Bank is in safe hands and it was the RBI which replaced the chairman Jammu and Kashmir Bank by the senior most in-house officer. The bank is the custodian of public money and not an institution of charity. Government will take all steps to restore the pristine glory of the bank. It is the jewel crown of the State. The head of the bank will be selected from the state and it will be run by the people of Jammu and Kashmir only.”
While talking about the complaints of the bank, the CS said that an amount to the tune of Rs 50 crores were spent on golf courses under CSR where just a thousand people, only elites go. “They cannot do it when last year State gave it Rs 500 crores as capital subsidy.”
Subramanyam said this bank is the glory of state but for some time there were a lot of complaints regarding illegal appointments in the past against the Bank. RBI wrote to the governor administration about the complaints, and the Government took action after investigating the complaints about mismanagement and lack of transparency in the bank’s functioning and added the bank will be cleansed of the mismanagement within three months.
“We saw the bank had appointed people under CSR. The bank cannot do that because it is not a charity organisation nor a government,” Subramanyam said. “The bank will regain its glory and it will shine. We will make it a world level financial institution.”
Subramanyam said that JK Bank would be brought under the RTI Act and CVC guidelines would be implemented by the end of this month.
“The recent raids on JK Bank were after the RBI wrote to the state about governance issues in the bank. Everything happening is under the scanner of Centre and Prime Minister,” he said. He added there were many politicians involved in corruption. “We will give a corruption-free state to locals and the bank will be protected and we want it should shine and have branches all across the world,” he added.
The Chief Secretary also said after three months people will start realising the changes. “And Within June only the CVC, RTI will be implemented in the bank. Bank is now moving in the right direction, now the bank is healthy,” said the CS.
