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Bank bust -- depositors suffer from withdrawal symptoms Thursday, March 15, 2001

AHMEDABAD: More than Rs 150 crore deposits were withdrawn today as a mania of panic withdrawals gripped the city. Depositors of more than a dozen co-operative banks queued up outside the banks since early morning to take away their money. The closure of Madhavpura Mercantile Co-operative Bank (MMCB) on Tuesday set cagey depositors of all co-operative banks in the city running.
Meanwhile, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) today registered a criminal complaint against MMCB chairman Ramesh Nandlal Parekh and other officials of the bank for not furnishing information and dishonouring disclosure norms.

RBI officials also met Cooperatives Minister Ramanlal Vora and Chief Secretary LNS Mukundan, requesting them to get the bank to open its branches and provide security, if necessary.

Unnerved by the panic withdrawals from MMCB, banks opened on a very cautious note in the morning after clearing house activity was paralysed and Rule 11 was invoked on Tuesday on the MMCB only to find hundreds of depositors lining up outside.

Depositors of the Kalupur Co-operative Bank queued up at all its branches and withdrawals continued at Visnagar Co-operative Bank, Ahmedabad Mercantile Bank, Nutan Nagrik Sahakari Bank, Ahmedabad District Co-operative Bank, Bhagyoday Bank, Charotar Nagarik and nearly a dozen other co-operative banks.

All banks, however, honoured their commitments today to repay depositors on demand and paid up more than Rs 150 crore till late evening. Meanwhile, clearing house activity returned to normal today after being suspended on Tuesday and total high value cheques of Rs 1,122 crore were cleared.

At the Kalupur Bank Satellite Road branch, more than 300 depositors waited under the sun to withdraw deposits. Security personnel had a tough time containing crowds at the Ahmedabad mercantile bank on the Nehrunagar road while at the Nutan Nagarik Sahakari bank's branches depositors were angry that only one person at a time was being allowed inside. Except for a couple of flared tempers at a couple of banks the situation remained normal.

 

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