By: Kunal Chonkar
Mumbai: If reports are to be believed, then the Axis Bank might be staring at another major dent in its clientele. The Maharashtra police are on the verge of transferring their 10,000 salary accounts out of the Axis Bank into nationalized banks, the bank might also lose another major central and state government funded agency – the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) soon.
According to sources, following the reported guidelines of account switch set for the state police. Employees of the NRHM have also demanded that even their salary accounts be transferred to a nationalized bank.
Last week, the Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray-led government was reported of considering a proposal to disburse salaries and grants only through nationalized banks. The state government which operates the Maharashtra police department’s salary account with Axis Bank, might soon switch over to a nationalized bank. The decision is looked upon as a political backlash against former Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis’s wife Amruta, than an economic one.
“If the reports are true, then the private bank is looking at another big dent. However, no official decision has been taken so far,” said a senior official, adding that a decision to this effect is likely to be taken after the cabinet expansion on 30 December.
Explaining the benefit of the reported switch, the officer said that the move will breathe a new life in public sector banks. While, a private bank like Axis might lose a valuable client, a public sector bank would reportedly earn salary accounts, to the tune of Rs 11,000 crore annually.
“Not only salary and grants, even pensions are mulled to be disbursed only through nationalized banks. There are over 20,000 NRHM employees. A delegation of NRHM has approached the CMO and we are hoping that even their demands are considered,” a former office-bearer of the Rashtriya Gramin Arogya Abhiyan Adhikari Aur Karmachari Mahasangh (RGAAAKM) said.
