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🇳🇵 Nepal /Economy & Trade

Rs26.39 million returned to 1,754 cooperative victims in two months

From Kathmandu Post · () English

Summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Outcome reported
  • Over 1,700 depositors of troubled cooperatives have received approximately Rs26.39 million in refunds over two months, managed by the Problematic Cooperative Management Committee.
  • The committee is using a revolving fund, seeded by the government and supplemented by recovered loans, to gradually refund depositors and has also completed savings adjustments.
  • Despite the committee's efforts, cooperative victims criticize the refund process for lacking fairness and transparency, advocating for proportional distribution of available funds.

Nepal's Problematic Cooperative Management Committee has returned Rs26.39 million to 1,754 depositors from 10 troubled cooperatives in the past two months. The committee, established to manage assets and recover loans from crisis-hit institutions, is utilizing a revolving fund for these refunds. This fund, initially supported by government seed money, is replenished by recovered loan amounts.

We are using the available funds to gradually refund depositors.

— Dilli Ram AcharyaChairperson of the Problematic Cooperative Management Committee, explaining the refund process.

Beyond direct refunds, the committee also processed savings adjustments for 141 depositors, totaling Rs17.95 million. Savings adjustments involve offsetting a depositor's savings against their outstanding loans to the same cooperative. In total, the committee managed Rs44.34 million through refunds and adjustments, benefiting nearly 1,900 individuals.

Victims are not satisfied with the current process. The distribution system is not equitable. Some people have received all their money back, while others haven’t received anything.

— Kushal KCChairperson of the National Campaign for Safeguarding Cooperative Depositors, criticizing the fairness of the refund mechanism.

However, the refund mechanism faces criticism from cooperative victims who deem it unfair and opaque. Kushal KC, chairperson of the National Campaign for Safeguarding Cooperative Depositors, highlighted dissatisfaction with the distribution system, where some depositors have received full refunds while others have received nothing. He urged for proportional distribution of available funds to ensure all depositors receive at least a partial refund and questioned the lack of clear payment criteria.

Whatever funds are available should be distributed proportionally so that every depositor receives at least a partial refund.

— Kushal KCChairperson of the National Campaign for Safeguarding Cooperative Depositors, suggesting an alternative distribution method.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Kathmandu Post. Summarized and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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