Decision to privatise IDBI Bank and selling it to corporate houses is retrograde. Govt. should control minimum 51% of Share Capital of the Bank
Recover bad loans due by corporate houses to IDBI Bank, not sell to them
Our attention has been drawn to the decision taken today in the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs on approval for strategic disinvestment and transferring the management control of IDBI Bank thus paving the way for the sale of this important bank to a private corporate company.
As on date, Government and LIC, put together have 96% of the share capital of IDBI Bank and the decision to hand over these shares and their control means outright sale of IDBI Bank, obviously to a private corporate company.
IDBI was started as a Development Financial Institution (DFI) and later converted as IDBI Bank much against the statute approved by the Parliament earlier. IDBI played a leading role in financing industrial development in our country. Because some private corporate houses have cheated the Bank by not repaying the loans, IDBI Bank came into problem. The need is to take action on the defaulters and recover the money. Unfortunately, now the decision has been taken to sell the Bank to a private company. IDBI Bank is a national asset and should not sold away in this fashion. It is a retrograde move.
Further, once the Bank is sold to private company, the existing reservation in jobs for SC/ST category will be withdrawn. This is social injustice to the unemployed youth of this country.
The only major problem of the Bank is its huge bad loans of Rs. 36,000 crores as on March, 2021 (22 %). Out of the Operating Profit of Rs 1900 crores for the year ended March, 2021, Rs. 1500 crores have been set off for provision for bad loans.
Now to camouflage these ills of the Bank, the Bank is being sold away. We express our strong protest against this decision and urge upon the Government not to proceed with the sale of IDBI Bank.
The Bank’s Deposit of Rs. 2,30,000 crores is people’s money. People’s money for people’s welfare and national development, not for private corporate loot.
C.H. VENKATACHALAM GENERAL SECRETARY 98400 89920
