Cooperative bank restores General Manager’s powers

The Board of Directors (BOD) of the Kangra Central Cooperative Bank Limited (KCCB) has restored the administrative powers of the General Manager and reinstated four dismissed employees.

During a meeting held under the chairmanship of Kuldeep Pathania here today, the Board also approved Rs 11.70 crore bonus for employees, besides donating Rs 2 crore to the CM’s Relief Fund.

Following the development, the bank will now operate under the supervision of two GMs. Notably, the powers of one GM were revoked last year following reported irregularities in loan disbursal and a surge in non-performing assets (NPAs). With NPAs below 1% after the recovery of bad loans, as per the RBI directions, the powers of GM have been restored by the bank management.

Chairman Kuldeep Pathania claimed that the move to restore the GM’s powers would help ease the workload on other staff members and improve administrative efficiency.

The four employees, who have been reinstated, were earlier dismissed for alleged irregularities. They had appealed against their dismissal.

In another major decision, the Board has approved a bonus equivalent to 35 days of salary to all KCCB employees. For this, a sum of Rs 11.70 crore has been approved by the bank management.

The BOD has also decided to donate Rs 2 crore to the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund to support rehabilitation efforts in parts of the state, which have suffered significant damage due to flashfloods triggered by heavy rain and cloudbursts.

In reply to a question, Kuldeep Pathania said due to ongoing monsoon conditions in upper Kangra, Kullu and Lahaul-Spiti districts, the bank had proposed to defer the Board of Directors’ elections for a few months. However, a final decision in this regard will have to be taken by the state government, he added.

Himachal Tribune