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Yes Bank crisis: Andhra's Tirumala temple trust withdrew Rs 1,300 cr from the bank in 2019

Sentinel Digital Desk

ANDHRA PRADESH: A decision to withdraw Rs 1,300 cr by the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD) at Tirumala, Andhra Pradesh from crisis-hit Yes Bank in Oct 2019, has paid off for the Trust Board which governs the Sri Venkateswara Temple at Tirumala which is one of the richest Hindu temples in the world.

According to an official with the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam, deposits of Rs 1,300 crore were withdrawn some months ago from Yes Bank but it had nothing to do with the crisis in the bank.

A spokesperson of the temple body clarified that on the maturity of the deposit term the money was withdrawn in October. "We have officials who monitor deposits in banks and the maturity periods. It's not that we suddenly withdrew the amount," he said.

Due to the higher interest rates offered by private banks, the temple body earlier deposited funds there. TTD officials also said that they act as per the decisions of the board with regard to depositing money or gold in banks. And in November last year, the board decided to deposit money only in nationalized banks.

"It was around October last year. As part of a regular exercise, deposits of various banks were monitored and as some deposits had matured, including that of Yes Bank, the TTD Trust Board held a meeting and decided to withdraw the money and invest it elsewhere," a TTD official said.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Thursday replaced the Yes Bank Board for 30 days and appointed an administrator, putting a limit of Rs 50,000 on withdrawal by account holders for a month. The RBI took the decision"owing to a serious deterioration in the financial position of the Bank.”

S Rajiv Krishna, Government Advisor of Andhra Pradesh, tweeted.

https://twitter.com/RajivKrishnaS/status/1235829999673856002