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Textiles ministry seeks Tk500cr from four banks

Reiaul Karim Byron
The textiles and jute ministry has sought Tk 500 crore from four state banks in the face of a cash crisis.
The ministry needs the amount to pay higher wages and arrears to workers of state-owned jute mills in line with the new labour law.
Also, Bangladesh Jute Mills Corporation (BJMC) will need money to pay bonus to their workers ahead of Eid and to purchase jute.
However, the banks have told the ministry that they were unable to give the amount without a guarantee from the finance ministry.
The textiles ministry sought Tk 150 crore each from Sonali and Janata banks and Tk 100 crore each from Agrani and Rupali.
Textiles ministry seeks
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The ministry on July 25 sat in a meeting with the chief executives of the banks to discuss the cash crisis, and later sent letters to the banks asking for the money.
The textiles ministry also informed the banks that the government would give them Tk 1,000 crore by August. Once they get the amount, they will pay the Tk 500 crore back.
A Janata Bank official said they have discussed the ministry's proposal in their board meeting and decided that the money will be disbursed only if the finance ministry gives a guarantee. The other three banks have also taken similar decisions, according to their officials.
When the government institutions face any problem they put pressure on the state banks for loans but later do not pay back the amount on time, the bank officials said.
The finance ministry often issues paper bonds to them against cash money, the
Janata Bank official said, requesting not to be named. He said the rate of interest on these bonds is 7.5 percent, whereas the cost of their fund is more than 10 percent. As a result, they have to count losses.
The officials said they were given five- to 10-year term bonds against arrear loans of Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation (BPC).
They said the BPC does not owe any money to Janata Bank but the bank's money has got trapped in bonds from where they are getting return lower than the cost of the fund.
Till March 31, state-owned enterprises owed to the banks Tk 37,189 crore of which the BJMC owed Tk 546 crore, according to the budget documents of the government.
According to the available statistics of the last 11 fiscal years, the BJMC has been counting losses except for one year.
The BJMC's loss was Tk 380 crore last fiscal year. In FY 2010-11, it made profit of around Tk 18 crore.