Page 65 - A Banker Down the Rabbit Hole

reason for default and more so when he is a poor old man. The old man
got tears in his eyes on sudden hard hit he got unexpectedly. I had all
sympathy for him at this juncture. I consoled him that he would not be
hit again and he could tell us his side of the story.

He said in a feeble tone that he had not taken any such loan for such a
big amount (Rs.10,000 in 1983) in his whole life. First we thought he was
still lying. But he now had even more tears and agony in his eyes and we
could not disbelieve him. I took out a standard uniform light green color
blank loan document of our bank used at all branches and asked him if
he had ever signed or put thumb impression on such documents of a
bank? He took a few moments in recalling and said perhaps he had put
his thumb impression on some papers of this color many years ago.

He disclosed that it was in the context of a financial aid given by the state
government during floods, for Rs. 500 each which they got through their
Sarpanch (the Village Panchayat Head) who asked a group of people of
his tribe to sign a bunch of papers each and get the cash. He was swearing
repeatedly that he had not taken any loan from any bank and had never
visited the bank. And we knew the credentials of that Village Head very
well.

I then asked the Loan Officer whether we would be then slapping the
village head also equally hard in his face. Now he was really repentant
on his conduct with the old man.

That day I realized that it was not the right kind of development banking
or financial inclusion our banks were practising in our country. The
benefits from banks were going to the handful rich persons of a section
of society. I could not say anything with certainty at that time whether
this was happening with connivance of bank officials or they were
negligent in their duty or even the bankers themselves had been
hoodwinked by the clever middlemen like village heads.

62 | A Banker down the Rabbit Hole