Nayagarh: A scam to the tune of Rs 5.4 crore has been unearthed at Kural primary cooperative society in Nayagarh district. An investigation into the scam has allegedly been suppressed while action has been limited to suspension and arrest of the secretary of the society. Hence, scores of depositors have lost all hope of getting their money back from the Nayagarh Central Cooperative bank.
Depositors have alleged that the authorities of the Nayagarh Central Cooperative Bank are not taking any step to recover the funds of the depositors.
According to reports, nearly 3,000 people had deposited money worth crores of rupees at the bank. The scam came to the fore some months back when a probe revealed that an sum of Rs 5,50,96,439 has been misappropriated. The department then had directed the Nayagarh Central Cooperative Bank to recover the money from society secretary Kelu Charan Rout. He was suspended and arrested on the basis of a complaint against him.
Harihar Panigrahi, a depositor, said that he had made seven fixed deposits to the tune of Rs 12.39 lakh in the bank between April 27, 2015 and November 15, 2016. “But my fixed deposits have not been cleared. Like me, many farmers have deposits worth lakhs of rupees,” he informed.
In an RTI reply to a query, it was stated that the department has issued a directive to recover the money from the society secretary. Despite protests and agitations, no step is being taken for the recovery of the money, locals alleged.