Dimapur, September 16 (MExN): The apex tribal organization of the Sumi community today issued a letter leveling serious charges against the Branch Manager of the State Bank of India, Zunheboto district branch, of being in nexus with touts and middlemen to exact commissions from clients seeking loans.
The Sumi Hoho has said that the branch manager and some officials, all unnamed, are charging 5% to 10% to process personal loans. The ‘hoho’ has demanded thorough enquiry and investigation by the bank authorities into the ‘dirty business being run by the branch manager and the middlemen’ in Zunheboto.
The Sumi Hoho said that in the absence of the private banks like ICICI, HDFC and AXIS the SBI is taking advantage of the situation. “…the Branch Manager of the State Bank of India, Zunheboto branch with some officials seems to be squeezing out the hard earned money of the common men by working hand in glove with the so-called Middlemen who charges 5% to 10 % for processing of all personal loans,” the ‘hoho’ said.
The Sumi Hoho’s president H Hesso and Secretary Vihuto Asumi appended the letter addressed to the Assistant General Manager of the SBI, Dimapur regional office.
The organization expressed regret that the ‘menace of the middle men’ has reached to such a level it has become nearly impossible for any customer to avail loan without paying 5% to 10% of their loan amount to the touts.
“Personal loans are seldom sanctioned by the Branch Manager citing various reasons unless it is routed through the middlemen. All loan related documents magically becomes complete and satisfies the Branch Manager’s requirements once it falls in the hands of the middlemen,” the ‘hoho’ said.
The organization has demanded response whether the SBI has given a separate checklist for personal loan requirements to the middlemen and why the bank cannot do one-to-one business with customers even in the cases of personal loans like the way it does with many other transactions.
“Even in the past, there has been many complaints and dissatisfaction with regards to the practice of processing the loans through the middle men by the SBI officials at Zunheboto branch, but the recent case, in the month of August 2011, in which within one month, the whole year’s budget of the personal loan supposedly got exhausted needs a thorough investigation and enquiry by the management of the State Bank of India,” the ‘hoho’ stated.
An instance the Sumi organization cited was of a loan transaction in August 2011. “Under the nose of the Branch Manager, middle men were operating openly and freely, collecting bulks of forms from the customers thereafter submitting them to the Branch Manager for processing after the working hours. In short, when it comes to Personal loan the Branch Manager does its business with the middlemen and not with the customers? Why are the middle men allowed to remain inside the Bank premises till late evening/night even after the working hours where as the others customers are shoed away?”
The organization has demanded that the nexus between the Branch Manager and the middlemen needs to be exposed as it is depriving the common men of the privileges and the principle for which the SBI proclaim to stand for. “All the guilty, both the Branch Manager as well as the middle men (especially the government employees as it is alleged that some of the middle men are said to be even state government employees), should be given an exemplary punishment by their own respective organization/department,” the Sumi Hoho said.
“If a customer has to pay 10% of his loan to the middlemen, why should he feel duty bound to repay the loan which he got through unfair means? The end result is, the number of nonpayment of loans will keep increasing and the bank will be reluctant to give further loans to those customers who actually require it,” the organization added.
The Sumi Hoho has appealed to the Assistant General Manager and the management of the state Bank of India to investigate the recent dispersal of the personal loan and interview all the beneficiaries to ascertain how they had availed the loan to unveil the truth of the existence of the ‘dirty business’ between the Branch Manager and the middlemen.
“Further, we request the management to urgently intervene and take strong corrective steps to set the chaotic situation of SBI Zunheboto in order. Stringent disciplinary actions should be taken against Branch Manager so that the roots of corruption which has become deeply embedded in the system may be rooted out once for all and the faith of the common men in SBI is redressed,” the ‘hoho’ added.
The Sumi Hoho has said that the branch manager and some officials, all unnamed, are charging 5% to 10% to process personal loans. The ‘hoho’ has demanded thorough enquiry and investigation by the bank authorities into the ‘dirty business being run by the branch manager and the middlemen’ in Zunheboto.
The Sumi Hoho said that in the absence of the private banks like ICICI, HDFC and AXIS the SBI is taking advantage of the situation. “…the Branch Manager of the State Bank of India, Zunheboto branch with some officials seems to be squeezing out the hard earned money of the common men by working hand in glove with the so-called Middlemen who charges 5% to 10 % for processing of all personal loans,” the ‘hoho’ said.
The Sumi Hoho’s president H Hesso and Secretary Vihuto Asumi appended the letter addressed to the Assistant General Manager of the SBI, Dimapur regional office.
The organization expressed regret that the ‘menace of the middle men’ has reached to such a level it has become nearly impossible for any customer to avail loan without paying 5% to 10% of their loan amount to the touts.
“Personal loans are seldom sanctioned by the Branch Manager citing various reasons unless it is routed through the middlemen. All loan related documents magically becomes complete and satisfies the Branch Manager’s requirements once it falls in the hands of the middlemen,” the ‘hoho’ said.
The organization has demanded response whether the SBI has given a separate checklist for personal loan requirements to the middlemen and why the bank cannot do one-to-one business with customers even in the cases of personal loans like the way it does with many other transactions.
“Even in the past, there has been many complaints and dissatisfaction with regards to the practice of processing the loans through the middle men by the SBI officials at Zunheboto branch, but the recent case, in the month of August 2011, in which within one month, the whole year’s budget of the personal loan supposedly got exhausted needs a thorough investigation and enquiry by the management of the State Bank of India,” the ‘hoho’ stated.
An instance the Sumi organization cited was of a loan transaction in August 2011. “Under the nose of the Branch Manager, middle men were operating openly and freely, collecting bulks of forms from the customers thereafter submitting them to the Branch Manager for processing after the working hours. In short, when it comes to Personal loan the Branch Manager does its business with the middlemen and not with the customers? Why are the middle men allowed to remain inside the Bank premises till late evening/night even after the working hours where as the others customers are shoed away?”
The organization has demanded that the nexus between the Branch Manager and the middlemen needs to be exposed as it is depriving the common men of the privileges and the principle for which the SBI proclaim to stand for. “All the guilty, both the Branch Manager as well as the middle men (especially the government employees as it is alleged that some of the middle men are said to be even state government employees), should be given an exemplary punishment by their own respective organization/department,” the Sumi Hoho said.
“If a customer has to pay 10% of his loan to the middlemen, why should he feel duty bound to repay the loan which he got through unfair means? The end result is, the number of nonpayment of loans will keep increasing and the bank will be reluctant to give further loans to those customers who actually require it,” the organization added.
The Sumi Hoho has appealed to the Assistant General Manager and the management of the state Bank of India to investigate the recent dispersal of the personal loan and interview all the beneficiaries to ascertain how they had availed the loan to unveil the truth of the existence of the ‘dirty business’ between the Branch Manager and the middlemen.
“Further, we request the management to urgently intervene and take strong corrective steps to set the chaotic situation of SBI Zunheboto in order. Stringent disciplinary actions should be taken against Branch Manager so that the roots of corruption which has become deeply embedded in the system may be rooted out once for all and the faith of the common men in SBI is redressed,” the ‘hoho’ added.
