In a much-awaited decision, the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government has finally reduced its association with private banks, and roped in nationalised and state-controlled rural and cooperative banks for official transactions, such as investment of excess funds. However, the employees have been allowed to keep their salary and pension accounts in their existing banks because the institutions approved for doing business with the government will not handle these matters.

Objections to a bank
Such a decision was long expected, because the ministers and leaders of MVA parties have been raising objections about a particular private bank, which has been doing business with the government since the Congress-NCP alliance regime between 1999 and 2014. The bank has salary accounts of the police department and several other departments also have ties with it. However, the finance department did not say whether the salary accounts in the private banks, including the controversial one and others, will be closed.