Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, Nov 25: Kashmir Economic Alliance Chairman, Mohammad Yaseen Khan, has asked Governor to withdraw its decision on turning J&K Bank into Public Sector Undertaking(PSU) and threatened State-wide agitation over it.
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Khan while addressing a press conference today threatened to launch State wide agitation against the Governor’s decision on J&K Bank. He said that there are already many PSUs like JK State Financial Corporation(SFC), SIDCO, JKSRTC, JK Industries and many others present in state of J&K.
“Some of these PSUs are financial institutions like JKSFC and SIDCO whose role in the development has been minimal and are on the verge of extinction. These PSUs have eroded the entire capital provided to them by State Government”, he said.
The KEA chairman said that besides being a burden on the State Government exchequer these PSUs have been provided a budgetary support every year despite the fact they have incurring heavy losses. “Almost all PUSs of the State have got rid of their employees by the virtue of different schemes like Voluntary Retirement (VRS), Golden Handshake etc and many of them have sold their assets like land and building to clear them of their liabilities,” Khan said.
Khan said all the PSUs which have been created in last three four decades have proven to be utter disasters so far as development and employment generation is concerned, not to speak of revenue generation.
“On the contrary J&K Bank was created during the Maharaja’s rule with the main objective of the development of State of Jammu and Kashmir. Ever since J&K Bank has remained an autonomous financial institution as a result of which it has the distinction of being largest/profitable institution of the State. Also it is the second largest employer of the state after the Government of J&K itself”, Khan said.
Khan said J&K Bank is the only Limited Company of the State listed in the National Stock Exchange. He said it has been the only backbone of the State’s economy with a lending of more than 25,000 crores to the people of Jammu and Kashmir. However the other nationalised banks working in the State don’t even contribute to the 10% of what J&K Bank does.
“J&K Government being shareholder of the J&K Bank has recovered its capital investment manifolds in the form of dividends paid by the J&K Bank to the State government annually,” he said.
“However the remaining shares are being owned by the people of Jammu & Kashmir which includes widows, destitutes , orphans and other people. The J&K Bank has sustained these families by providing them steady income in the form of dividends for the shares owned by then,” Khan said.
Khan said: “We are now left with no choice to save our state and institutions by mobilising public opinion and hitting the roads against such disastrous and adverse decisions of the SAC. Unless the order is not rolled back immediately we will be forced to call for a state wide agitation.”
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