Team Goemkarponn
Panaji: With depositors lining up to withdraw funds amid regulatory action, the Tirumalla Tirupati Multistate Co-operative Credit Society Ltd on Friday sought to reassure investors that their money remains secure, even as the institution faces scrutiny from the State government.
A delegation of the society’s management, headed by chairman Gurmeet Singh Bhambrah, met Co-operation Minister Subhash Shirodkar and urged the government to withdraw show-cause notices issued to its branches and lift the suspension of its No Objection Certificate (NOC) required to operate in Goa.
Addressing the media after the meeting, Bhambrah said the issues flagged by authorities were largely procedural in nature and stemmed from staffing constraints. He said the Minister was assured that such shortcomings would be rectified and not repeated. According to Bhambrah, the society has already submitted most of the documents sought by the Registrar of Co-operative Societies, with the remaining paperwork to be furnished shortly.
“We have complied with the majority of requirements and requested the government to restore the NOC after reviewing the submissions. I don’t foresee any difficulty once the process is complete,” Bhambrah said.
He also appealed to depositors not to panic, stressing that the cooperative functions on trust and transparency. “There is absolutely no reason for fear. Depositors will not face any problem. Our counters remain open for anyone who wishes to withdraw funds,” he said, adding that even during the Covid-19 pandemic the society ensured access to deposits, including doorstep delivery where required.
Earlier in the week, the State government had withdrawn the NOC granted to the credit society following an inspection that reportedly pointed to repeated non-compliance with statutory norms. Officials cited failures such as non-submission of audited financial statements, lack of cooperation during inspections, breach of NOC conditions and ignoring notices issued by the Registrar of Co-operative Societies.
Minister Shirodkar said multiple notices had been served on the society seeking detailed information on its operations, including the number of depositors, volume of deposits and investments, loan portfolios, non-performing assets and overall asset position. “There was no response from the society, leaving the government without basic data on its functioning,” he said.
The Minister added that the documents now submitted will be examined by the Registrar, who has been directed to submit a detailed report by next week. “The society has been granted time to provide the remaining information. A final call on revoking or continuing the NOC suspension will be taken after the Registrar’s report is received,” Shirodkar said.
