Large-scale irregularities in issuance of crop loans have been reported at the B.H. Road main branch of Corporation Bank in the city.
The money sanctioned as crop loan to the accounts of over 40 farmers from Kommanal, Haramaghatta, Hadonahalli, Sugur, Beeranahalli, and Chikkakudli villages in this branch was allegedly transferred to the private bank account of a Kotaiah. The total amount diverted in this manner is said to be around ₹10 crore. According to sources, the farmers were kept in the dark about this.
The matter came to light on Saturday when a few farmers from Chikkakudli village saw the transaction entries on their passbooks. Large sums were shown as remitted to them and then transferred to another account. The farmers staged a protest under the banner of Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha (KRRS) on the bank premises and demanded a thorough probe into the matter.
Vasanth Kumar, president of the district unit of KRRS, said sums ranging from ₹5 lakh to ₹28 lakh were remitted to, and then diverted from, the farmers’ accounts as crop and mortgage loans. The farmers had submitted applications for crop loan in April. The money sanctioned was a lot more than what they had sought. Mr. Kumar said it is likely that there was a large-scale misuse of farmers’ accounts in this manner.
Following the incident, the Corporation Bank management suspended assistant general manager Balakrishnamurthy and field agriculture officer Madhusudan Rao, who were responsible for issuance of loans for agricultural purposes at the branch. A team of senior officials from the vigilance wing of the bank visited the branch and collected information on the matter.
