Wayanad: Youth organisations of various political parties staged large-scale protests at Kalpetta on Monday, alleging that the Kerala Gramin Bank deducted EMIs from the relief money given to Wayanad landslide survivors. Youth Congress, Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI) and Muslim Youth League united in the protest outside the bank’s Kalpetta regional branch on Monday morning.

According to the protesters, the bank on Sunday withdrew Rs 2,000 from the accounts of some landslide survivors. This amount was taken from the Rs 10,000 given by the Kerala government as immediate relief to those affected in Mundakkai, Chooralmala and surrounding areas. The party workers also accused the bank officials of coercing the survivors into renewing their gold loans.

The protesters demanded an immediate refund of the deducted money and urged the bank to stop collecting EMIs from the survivors. They also called for a written assurance from the bank that no further EMIs would be taken and requested a public apology from the officials.

“What the bank did was inhumane. If the officials don't apologise to the people of Kerala for their actions, we will expand the protest to other branches starting Tuesday," a DYFI worker told Manorama News.

Following allegations that the Chooralmala branch of Kerala Bank had debited EMIs from landslide survivors' accounts, Wayanad District Collector Meghashree D R instructed the bank to refund the deducted money.

The bank's decision to deduct EMI from the compensation amount goes against the assurances given by the State Level Bankers’ Committee and the state government that the pending instalments would not be deducted from the families' accounts.

The government had asked the PSU financial institutions to forego their loan revenue after private money lenders were seen forcing the landslide victims to remit the monthly instalments for the loans they availed of.

The state government has credited Rs 10,000 as an immediate relief fund to the accounts of each of the 617 affected families. Another Rs 10,000 has been released to 124 families as assistance for conducting the last rites of the dead. The state has also distributed Rs 72 lakh to 12 families (Rs 6 lakh each) from the Chief Minister’s Distress Relief Fund and the State Disaster Management Fund. 

The majority of the people from the landslide-hit villages of Chooralmala and Mundakkai depended on the Chooralmala branch of the Kerala Gramin Bank for various loans and other financial transactions.

Sources said a majority of loans are availed of by the traders and by wives of estate employees to buy cattle to ensure an additional income for their households.

The bank deducted EMI ranging from Rs 1,500 to Rs 5,000 from the unfortunate families who have lost everything. The majority of them are still in relief camps. Many of them were planning to remit the advance amount for renting out houses after receiving the compensation.