Banking frauds cause 21 PSU banks to loss Rs 25,775 crore, reveals RTI
New Delhi : It is really shocking to know that twenty-one public sector banks (PSBs) have suffered huge losses totalling Rs 25,775 crore due to banking frauds in the financial year 2017-18, RTI stated.
The Punjab National Bank (PNB) had incurred the highest loss of Rs 6,461.13 crore due to diverse cases of fraud during the fiscal that ended on March 31 this year, Chandrasekhar Gaud, who had filed the RTI with the Reserve Bank of India, told PTI today.
One of the biggest banking frauds, allegedly involving diamond merchants Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi and PNB officials, is being currently investigated by the Central Bureau of Investigation. The investigating agency has filed two charge sheets in the special CBI court in Mumbai in connection with the Rs 12,636 crore PNB scam. Officials at RTI stated that the State Bank of India had incurred losses of Rs 2390.75 crore due to various fraudulent cases.
Within certain time period, the Bank of India had incurred a loss of Rs 2,224.86 crore, Bank of Baroda’s losses stood at Rs 1,928.25 crore, Allahabad Bank at Rs 1,520.37 crore, Andhra Bank at Rs 1,303.30 crore and Uco Bank at Rs 1,224.64 crore. As per report, the IDBI Bank incurred losses of Rs 1,116.53 crore, Union Bank of India had losses of Rs 1,095.84 crore, Central Bank of India of Rs 1,084.50 crore, Bank of Maharashtra of Rs 1,029.23 crore and Indian Overseas Bank had incurred a loss of Rs 1,015.79 crore.
The RBI has explained to RTI that only those cases of fraud, involving a sum of over Rs 1 lakh, were included in the list. Conversely it did not disclose the numbers of cases or the kind of fraud cases. Other banks, as per the RTI, that faced losses due to fraud during this period were Corporation Bank with a loss of Rs 970.89 crore, United Bank of India with Rs 880.53 crore,
Canara Bank at Rs 190.77 crore, Punjab and Sind Bank at Rs 90.01 crore, Dena Bank at Rs 89.25 crore, Vijaya Bank at Rs 28.58 crore and Indian Bank at Rs 24.23-crore made up the rest of the list provided by RBI as part of its RTI reply. Economist Jayantilal Bhandari, commenting on the RTI, said that the condition of 21 PSBs of the country was “extremely worrisome” due to banking fraud. Bhandari said, “With regard to fraud cases, the banks are not only facing huge economic losses, but the prospects of giving new loans by them in the future are also affected adversely. This situation is obviously not good for the economy.”
