Bhubaneswar: The Finance Department of the state government on Saturday removed three major private sector banks — HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, and Axis Bank — from its list of empanelled banks authorized to handle government business and deposits.
The notification, issued by Principal Secretary
Saswata Mishra, cited "persisting poor performance in flagship government
schemes" and "discouraging general banking parameters" over the
past two financial years as the primary reasons behind the decision.
All State Government departments and associated
bodies — including Directorates, PSUs, Agencies, Societies, Universities, and
Establishments — have been directed to immediately close their current,
savings, and other running accounts with the three banks. The funds must be
transferred to accounts in any of the remaining empanelled banks.
However, the order clarifies that existing
Fixed Deposits and Term Deposits with these banks need not be prematurely
closed to avoid interest loss. Instead, these deposits should be shifted to
approved banks upon maturity.
The directive, which came into effect on June
21, 2025, warns that non-compliance will be taken seriously. Departments have
been instructed to widely circulate the order among all institutions under
their administrative control.