MVA Govt directs its employees to open their salary and pension accounts in Nationalized Banks only

Mumbai: The Shiv Sena, Congress, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) in a well-crafted move used the recent collapse of the Yes Bank, a private bank to direct all its employees and pensioners to open their salary and pension accounts only in nationalized banks only within the next 18 days before April 1, 2020. It now means that all those state government employees who had opened their salary or pension accounts in private banks like Axis Bank will have to reopen their salary and pension accounts in designated nationalized banks only.

Likewise, citing Central Government and Reserve Bank of India (RBI) directives on depositing surplus funds and doing all official transactions through nationalized banks, the state government has directed all its offices, state public undertakings and corporations to follow the directives strictly.

It may be recalled that the Sena led MVA government already has had a dislike for the private Axis Bank where Amruta Fadnavis, wife of Leader of Opposition in Legislative Assembly and former chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis works as vice president and corporate head. The MVA had already red-flagged the previous Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) led government decision of opening salary accounts of government employees in the Axis Bank. The sudden collapse of the Yes Bank seems to have come in handy for the MVA government.

As per the Government Resolution (GR) issued by the Ministry of Finance and Planning on March 13, 2020, all Maharashtra government employees have been asked to open their salary accounts in 11 Nationalized Banks by April 1. The state government Pensioners too have been advised to take due care in ensuring that they have their pension accounts opened only in nationalized banks.

In respect to its field offices, state Public Sector Undertakings (SPSUs), state run Corporations, the MVA government has taken recourse to circulars and guidelines issued by the Central Government in respect to implementation of its schemes and  aided schemes through nationalized banks and doing all banking transactions only through nationalized banks. The MVA government has also cited RBI guidelines on governments doing their banking transactions through private banks.

Taking recourse to the circulars issued by the Center and the RBI, the MVA has directed all its field offices, SPSUs and state run Corporations to henceforth do all their banking transactions through nationalized banks and deposit their surplus funds only in nationalized banks. All the state and district treasury heads have been asked to take due note of the directive while clearing the salary and pension bills for the month of April and May.

As per the GR, the Maharashtra government employees have been asked to open their salary accounts in the following 11 nationalized banks – State Bank of India, Indian Bank, Bank of Maharashtra, Bank of India, Punjab National Bank, Central Bank of India, Andhra Bank, Corporation Bank, Indian Overseas Bank, Union Bank of India and Bank of Baroda. The state government has added names of two more nationalized banks to the above list, where its pensioners should open their pension accounts and these include – Syndicate Bank and Allahabad Bank.