Balasore: The long wait is over; Odisha government has started releasing compensation amount to the bank accounts of small depositors duped in the multi-crore chit fund scam.

The State government today transferred a sum of Rs 12, 48,832 to the bank accounts of 200 small depositors through Real Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) in Balasore district.

In the first phase, compensation amount will be released to the bank accounts of 1,096 identified genuine small depositors in Balasore district. It’s worth mentioning here that the Odisha government has classified investors in chit fund companies having deposits below Rs 10,000 as ‘small depositors’.

“1,096 genuine small depositors who had deposits of Rs 10,000 or less have been identified. Today we have paid Rs 12, 48, 832 to 200 out of them through RTGS. We have deposited the money in their bank accounts through RTGS on the basis of indemnity bonds and cover page of their passbooks sent to us by the tehsildars. We have made arrangements to very soon within a day or two make payments to the remaining small depositors,” informed Balasore Collector Ramesh Chandra Rout.

“There was a longstanding demand for refunding money to depositors. I would first like to thank the Chief Minister that the process for refunding money to the depositors has begun as per his promise. Some small depositors in Balasore district have got their refunds today which has given new hope to all depositors that the assurance given by the Chief Minister has been implemented though late. And in future others too will get back their money. This is definitely a good sign,” said BJD Rajya Sabha MP Soumya Ranjan Patnaik, who had spearheaded the cause of duped chit fund depositors in the State.

Notably, in the last week of March Principal Secretary Finance, T K Pandey in a letter addressed to all Collectors had directed for release of compensation amount to genuine small depositors as recommended by the Field Verification Team in accordance with the list furnished by Justice M M Das Commission of Inquiry probing the chit fund scam in Odisha in its Report no.1 and 2.

The State government had set up a corpus fund of Rs 300 crore in 2013 to refund their deposits to small depositors duped by chit fund companies.