Thiruvananthapuram: People in landslide-hit Chooralmala and Mundakkai regions of Wayanad in Kerala owed nearly Rs 30 crore to various banks due to loans taken for purposes such as agriculture, housing and cars.
Kerala Bank, a cooperative bank of the state government, has already decided to write off loans owed to it by landslide victims. Other banks are expected to make similar announcements soon.
Pradeep KS, Chairman of the State Level Bankers Committee (SLBC), said DH that according to a provisional estimate, people in the region have outstanding bank loans amounting to Rs 29 crore. A major portion of this is with Kerala Gramin Bank, followed by Kerala Bank and other nationalised and scheduled banks.
He said that a meeting of the SLBC would be held soon to take a decision on loans to the landslide victims.
Banking sector sources said that many of the houses mortgaged for borrowing could have been completely destroyed by the landslide and many plots of land mortgaged for purposes such as agricultural loans could have become unusable for cultivation. There could even be insurance cover for the mortgaged houses.
Meanwhile, three more body parts were reportedly found in the Chaliyar River during an extensive search operation on Monday. The search at the impact sites on land is also progressing with the help of local residents.
As part of a special drive to issue new certificates to those who had lost multiple certificates in the landslide, 1,162 certificates were issued to 878 people. Efforts to prepare houses for temporary accommodation of the landslide survivors are also progressing. The state government is also preparing a memorandum to be sent to the headquarters seeking assistance in providing relief and rehabilitation to the survivors.
Published August 12, 2024, 12:40 p.m. IS
