Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan urged bankers in the state to write off loans of Wayanad landslide victims and said extending repayment duration wouldn’t solve the problem. The chief minister’s demand comes amidst reports of banks debiting loan dues from the bank accounts of survivors.
In a meeting with the State Level Bankers' Committee, Vijayan said writing off the loans wouldn’t impose any unbearable burden on the banks. Relaxation in interest amounts or extension of time for remitting monthly instalments would not be a solution in the landslide-hit regions, Vijayan said.
The chief minister pointed out that many of those who had availed the loans were dead and their land became unusable after the disaster. "The only thing we can do is write off the entire loans taken by people in these affected areas," PTI reported quoting CM.
The CM also expressed displeasure over certain banks deducting loan payments from survivors’ accounts.
Meanwhile, members of various youth organisations protested outside Kerala Gramin Bank in Kalpetta, Wayanad for debiting EMI from the money credit to survivors’s accounts as aid by the state government. The bank has reportedly debited Rs 15,000 from the account of one of the survivors towards loan repayment.
Earlier, the Kerala Bank in the state had waived off loans taken by villagers from Mundakkai and Chooralmala considering the devastation caused by the landslide. Over 200 persons died and 119 persons went missing in the landslide that hit Chooralmala and Mundakkai on July 30.
The state government has sought Rs 2000 crore from the Centre for rehabilitation. Revenue Minister K. Rajan said the region has incurred loss to the tune of Rs 1,200 crore due to the landslide.
