20000224

Banks' utility bills counters closure causing hardships

RECORDER REPORT

SIALKOT: A number of branches of Allied Bank (ABL) and Habib Bank (HBL) have closed their counters for collection of utility bills in Daska and Sialkot. No reason has been given by the concerned bank officials in this regard.

HBL and ABL, Paris Road, branches have closed their utility bills receiving counters in Sialkot. Due to this, the electricity and gas consumers, particularly Pooran Nagar, Nishat Park, People's Colony, Mohammadpura, Pakpura and Civil Lines, Sialkot are facing great hardships in the payment of their utility bills and have to go to far-flung area branches of the above mentioned banks.

In Daska, the main branch of Allied Bank was the only branch which used to receive bills of about 8 lakh population. Suddenly, the bank closed the bills receiving counter, without giving any reason. Now, no bank is ready to collect gas bills from the hundreds of thousands of consumers.

The manager of ABL Daska branch said that his branch would receive the Sui gas and electricity bills only of those people who would be the account holders of his bank. Then the payment of the utility bills would be accepted through cheques. This shows that the electricity and Sui gas consumers having no account in Daska ABL branch would not be able to deposit their utility bills in the bank.

Now, very big queues are seen everywhere in Sialkot district in front of other scheduled banks for depositing the bills.

The citizens have urged the Chief Executive to assign other scheduled banks for receiving the Sui gas and electricity bills in Daska City and Sialkot, as soon as possible.