AP govt to release Rs 2,263 crore for Agrigold victims

Andhra Pradesh government has sanctioned an amount of Rs 2,263 cr for the Agrigold victims who have deposited amounts below Rs 20,000; Home Minister Mekathoti Sucharitha here on Tuesday said that the state government decided to help the small-time deposits in the first phase. Speaking at the YSR Congress party central office at Tadepalli, she said with the government aid 65% of the depositors would be benefited.

AgriGold was established in 1995 with 32 lakh depositors from AP, Telangana, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Orissa, Chhattisgarh and Andaman and Nicobar islands and Rs 6,380 crore was collected from the depositors. As the deposits were not returned even after the expiry of the due date, the depositors booked cases against Agrigold in several police stations in the state.

The deposits were not returned to victims started agitations all over the state. YS Jagan Mohan Reddy had met the Agrigold victims during padayatra of the state and included their demands in the party manifesto. The Chief Minister had in his first Cabinet meeting said the state government would sanction Rs 11,500 crore to the Agrigold victims and the latest GO sanctioning aid to them was part of it, she said.

The Home Minister said that though the earlier TDP government had promised to go to the aid of small-time depositors, it had not done so. “There is no precedent anywhere in the country that the government has come to the aid of depositors of a scam-ridden private company,” she said. She assured the depositors that the CM himself will be present at the time of distribution of the amount to the victims.

Ms Sucharita said that efforts are being made to seize Agrigold assets and hand them over to the court and soon the remaining victims of Agrigold would also be benefited.