All India Bank Employees' Association opposes demands for privatisation of public sector banks

HYDERABAD: All India Bank Employees' Association (AIBEA) has opposed the demands for privatisation of Public Sector Banks.

In a statement here on Saturday, AIBEA General Secretary Ch Venkatachalam said ever since the Punjab National Bank- diamantaire Nirav Modi Rs 13,000 Crore Scam came to light, there has been strong voice from different corners demanding privatisation of Public Sector Banks.

It started with ASSOCHAM making this demand, then followed by FICCI, Chief Economic Adviser to Government of India Arvind Subramanian, Indian-American Economist Arvind Panagariya, Non-Executive Chairman of Infosys Nandan Neilkani, Ex-Comptroller and Auditor General of India Vinod Rai.

They were playing like a perfect orchestra troupe. Their only argument was that PNB fraud has taken place because of the inefficiency of public sector ownership of banks, he said.

Mr. Venkatachalm said they conveniently forgot the fact that between 1947 (Independence) and 1969 (Nationalisation of Banks), 736 Private Banks had collapsed and closed down due to 'mismanagement' by the private owners of these banks.

Even then this propaganda has been doing rounds now and then from these vested interests, corporate houses and their mouthpieces demanding privatisation of PSBs, the AIBEA leader said.

He said if private banks are really efficient, why these Banks were closed down and merged with others.

Most of these banks were merged with Public Sector Banks. PSBs have become the Neelakana Mahadev to swallow the poison of failure of many private banks and it is funny that Assocham is asking PSBs to be privatized now.

''We understand their greed but they cannot claim that private banks are more efficient,'' the top Union leader contended.

Secondly, the alarmingly increasing bad loans in Banks. Who are the delinquents and who are the defaulters? Are all of them not private companies, industrialists and corporate houses? 12 cases of Non-Performing Asset (NPAs) have been referred to NCLT for insolvency and bankruptcy proceedings involving Rs.253,000 crore.

Who are they? Are all of them not top private corporate borrowers. Why did they not repay the loans? Is it their efficiency? Should banks be privatised and handed over to these people?, he asked.

Can they say that these 9063 companies are not privately owned. What happened to their efficiency. Why have they deliberately defaulted the Bank loans to the tune of Rs.110,050 crore as on December 2017? Is it not open loot of public savings? Still they talk about private sector efficiency! NPAs of only 5 PSBs ( SBI, BOI, PNB BOB, IDBI Bank) are more than the NPAs of ICICI Bank.

In 16 PSBs, NPAs are less than NPAs of ICICI Bank. Still, they talk of efficiency!, Mr Venkatachalam remarked.