Odisha urges FM to release Jagannath temple funds in Yes Bank

Bhubaneswar, March 8 (IANS) Odisha Finance Minister Niranjan Pujari has requested Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman to instruct the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to allow release of Rs 545 crore deposited by Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) in Yes Bank."Various funds related to the temple i.e. Foundation Fund, Corpus Fund and Temple Fund are being managed by the Managing Committee. Out of these funds, an amount of Rs 545 crore has been deposited with Yes Bank, Puri in shape of TDRs," said Pujari in a letter to the Union Finance Minister.Pujari said these deposits are maturing in March, 2020."In the meantime, Yes Bank Ltd has been placed under moratorium by RBI and certain restrictions have been imposed by RBI for withdrawal of funds from Yes Bank," said Pujari.Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) is a statutory authority working under provisions of an Act of the state government. This is an issue of religious importance for devotees, the state Finance Minister said.Since the RBI imposed a moratorium on the cash-starved Yes Bank and capped withdrawals at Rs 50,000, the opposition parties in the state have been targeting the state government over its decision to park the huge sum of money in a private bank instead of a nationalised bank.
--IANS cd/kr