Allahabad Bank Plan To Pare Npas

Allahabad Bank has drawn up an elaborate programme to reduce NPAs in 1997-98. Bank officials said the programme will be followed aggressively so that the 24 per cent NPA figure of fiscal 1995-96 is brought down to 8 per cent in 1997-98.

The first strategy in tackling NPAs will be to ensure that there are no additions to the NPA pool, by close monitoring, supervision and follow-up of accounts by branch managers and officers.

Second, all branch managers and the credit department have been instructed to list by mid-May '97, accounts which show signs of becoming unproductive.

The bank found out that only 8 per cent of the full capacity of the task forces, set up at the regional and zonal levels to follow up NPA accounts, were utilised in fiscal 1996-97. This year,it plans to draw up schedules and assign accounts to each task force so that they are utilised fully and the percentage of recovered loans go up. The committees at regional and zonal offices will meet every Monday from this fiscal and dispose of all compromise cases after discussion with the branch managers.

 

Harbhajan Singh, CMD of Allahabad Bank, said that the high powered committee set up, comprising the general manager (recovery), the official who is second in command to the general manager (recovery), the zonal manager and the concerned branch manager, will be pushed into high gear, so that loan recovery goes up. This committee will visit each zone twice in each quarter and may also increase the number of visits if the volume of proposals and number of negotiations warrant it.

In cases where compromise is not possible, the bank will apply for receivers and attachment of personal assets before judgement. The bank will also advertise in newspapers about the mortgaged assets in order to protect their assets.

There will be emphasis in the prompt execution of decrees in suit filed accounts and branch managers will be responsible for tracing the borrowers and the mortgaged assets.

In rural branches, Allahabad Bank has decided to follow up accounts especially during harvest time when the borrowers are likely to have money at hand. Recovery camps will be held regularly, reminders will be sent urging timely repayment and officials of the bank will establish personal contact with borrowers.

Also, panchayats, prominent citizens, non-government organisations, government officials, agricultural field officers and members of task forces will be mobilised to recover the bank's dues.