After 12 years, Jalandhar Improvement Trust finally clears PNB’s loan

Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, February 5

The Jalandhar Improvement Trust has freed several properties, including Guru Gobind Singh Stadium, from the Punjab National Bank loan it had taken in 2017 to develop its Surya Enclave Extension scheme.

While the JIT had taken a loan of Rs 150 crore, it had dues close to Rs 167 crore owing to the delay in payment.

The PNB had even announced the scheme to be a non-performing asset (NPA) and was set to auction the stadium to avail its recovery, but the state government somehow intervened and managed to prevent its sale. During the previous Congress government, an amount of Rs 11 crore had been paid to the bank.

About two months ago, the government managed to avail a loan of Rs 50 crore each from the Improvement Trusts in Ludhiana and Amritsar. A one-time settlement plan was worked out with the bank wherein an amount of Rs 112 crore was decided for the final settlement. After a payment of Rs 100 crore, the remaining Rs 12 crore, too, has been paid by the JIT, after which it stands clear of all bank loans now.

Of the Rs 12 crore payment that it has made now, it has paid only Rs 2 crore from its own while the remaining Rs 5 crore has come from Ludhiana Trust, Rs 3 crore from Rajpura Trust and Rs 2 crore from the Kartarpur Trust.

JIT Chairman Jagtar S Sanghera said: “Now that all our properties are free, we will be able to sell them, develop them or make some constructions. We will be able to do auctions and sell off some plots. From the income that we would get, we should be able to pay back our loans to the four Trusts which had pitched in for our financial help.”

Other Trusts pitch in

• Rs 112 cr paid to bank as one-time settlement
• Rs 100 cr procured earlier from Ludhiana & Amritsar Trusts
• Rs 5 cr provided by Ludhiana Trust
• Rs 3 cr came from Rajpura Trust
• Rs 2 cr each from Kartarpur Trust & own Trust

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