Puri: Nullifying its earlier tender, the Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) has invited fresh applications from nationalised banks for safety of Srimandir corpus fund and temple fund.
“The earlier tender (floated March 18) in which Union Bank of India (UBI) was chosen to keep the corpus fund as well as temple fund of the 12th century shrine for three years has been cancelled. A new tender has been floated inviting nationalised banks to keep the corpus fund and temple fund as fixed deposit for a year,” Srimandir administrator (Development) Ajay Kumar Jena said on sidelines of the tender process.
About the cancellation, Jena said, “We will get more interest on an annual fixed deposit instead of a three-year term. While 50 per cent of the corpus fund and temple fund will be parked with the nationalised bank offering highest rate of interest, remaining fund will be kept with the banks offering second and third highest rate of interest. However, Rs 102 crore foundation fund of the temple will be kept with State bank of India (SBI), Jena pointed out, adding that interested nationalised banks have been asked to submit their quotations by 11am of March 26.
Notably, a day after resuming full banking services, crisis-hit Yes Bank had remitted over Rs 397 crore to the SBI account of Srimandir March 19.
PNN