MSMEs appeal to Coimbatore Collector for protection from action by banks for non-repayment of loans
The Hindu
FOCIA & TACT appeal to Coimbatore Collector to protect MSMEs from private banks' action due to loan repayment delays. Bank took over MSME unit owner's house worth ₹2 cr for ₹80 lakh loan. FOCIA urges Collector to support MSMEs by asking bank to reschedule repayment.
The Tamil Nadu Association of Cottage and Tiny Enterprises (TACT) and the Federation of Coimbatore Industrial Associations (FOCIA) have appealed to Coimbatore District Collector Kranthi Kumar Pati to protect Micro, Small and Medium-scale Enterprises (MSMEs) from action by private banks when there are delays in repayment of loans.
In a memorandum submitted to the Collector on Monday, the Federation said that one of its members had taken loan from a private bank in 2017 and repaid the amount for three years. The unit suffered from drop in business when the pandemic spread in 2020 and struggled to revive operations. It had six months moratorium then to repay the loan and got additional loan from the bank based on Central government’s relief measures for MSMEs. However, the bank used the additional amount for repayment of dues for the existing loan, the Federation alleged.
The private bank took over the house of the MSME unit owner in Coimbatore last week. “The total amount to be repaid is approximately ₹80 lakhs. However, the house is worth almost ₹2 crores. The bank took over the property that was pledged as collateral for the loan,” alleged J. James, president of TACT and one of the co-ordinators of FOCIA.
The Federation appealed to the Collector to support the MSME unit by asking the bank to reschedule the repayment period and also protect the MSMEs in the district from action by private banks when the units are in distress.
“We are judges and therefore, cannot act like Mughals of a bygone era ... the writ courts in the guise of doing justice cannot transcend the barriers of law,” the High Court of Karnataka observed while setting aside an order of a single judge, who in 2016 had extended the lease of a public premises allotted to a physically challenged person to 20 years contrary to 12-year period stipulated in the law.
The High Court of Karnataka on Monday declined to interfere, at present, in the investigation against a Bharatiya Janata Party worker, who is among the accused persons facing charges of circulating obscene clips, related to “morphed” images and videos clips related to Prajwal Revanna, former Hassan MP, in public domain through pen drives and other modes.
The 16th edition of Bhoomi Habba was held on June 8, at the Visthar campus. The festival drew a vibrant crowd who came together to celebrate eco-consciousness through a variety of engaging activities, creative workshops, panel discussions, interactive exhibits and performances, all centered around this year’s theme: “Save Water, Save Lives.”