Bhubaneswar: There are difficult and trying times ahead for Public Sector Units (PSUs) in Odisha. According to a new directive issued by the Principal Secretary to Odisha Government, AKK Meena, the officials working in PSUs will be held personally responsible for depositing government money in banks. He warned them to be very careful while doing so.
The Odisha Government has told the PSUs, departments and agencies that “funds for state-run schemes should be used directly from the treasury through the integrated finance management system (IFMS) without being parked in any account.”
The Principal Secretary’s directive also states that there should be sufficient reason of utility for withdrawing the money from IFMS and depositing it in the bank. If there is no good reason, it will be considered a financial irregularity.
In July this year, the Odisha Government had empanelled 17 PSU banks, eight private banks, two regional rural banks, a cooperative bank and a financial bank for handling business and deposits of state PSUs and autonomous societies.
Meena’s directive further states that reports about the fiscal health of these banks point towards apprehensions regarding the safety of deposits in some of these banks, especially since the deposits here are insured only up to Rs one lakh. This being so, it becomes all the more imperative for PSUs to ensure the financial health of the banks before making government deposits in them. Those who do, shall do it at their own personal risk.
