TURA: An example of how certain banks function in Garo Hills was brought to the fore during the Banking Ombudsman awareness camp held recently at the District Auditorium in Tura.
A senior SBI official of Chandmary Branch in Tura was left red-faced during the interactive session when a customer raised questions on the functioning of his bank after he was recently denied a certain facility which he was entitled to as per his opted preferences while opening his account.
According to the customer, his account privileges included core banking facilities which enabled him to make transactions from any bank in the region provided it comes under SBI. However, he was allegedly told by an employee to go to his home bank when he tried to make use of the facility.
Anand Prakash who was present on the occasion advised the customer to initially submit an official complaint to the bank to get his grievances addressed. The bank official was also directed to look into the matter and to take necessary action if the allegations were found to be true to ensure customers are not deprived of their services.
It is an undeniable fact that most banks in Garo Hills do not follow the account terms and conditions when it comes to rendering services to customers. Besides there are no shortages of other complaints from the people who have had to endure countless inconveniences posed during a simple withdrawal or deposit.
The high and mighty attitude of certain bank staff especially from the SBI is another thing which has been questioned by many since the past many years. According to one customer, the phrase, ‘the customer is always right’ is one that is still unheard of in certain banks in Garo Hills.
