Government housing loan scheme turns into nightmare; employees receive calls from banks asking for repayment 

KASARGOD: Several government employees and teachers in Kerala are facing a financial crisis due to discrepancies in the repayment of House Building Advance (HBA) loans implemented by the government. Despite deductions being made from their salaries, bank officials are claiming that repayments have not been received, leaving the employees in a state of distress.

The issue has affected over 180 teachers and government employees in Kasaragod district alone, who have taken loans for building or renovating their houses. Many of them have received calls from banks demanding repayment, despite salary slips showing that deductions have been made.

The Punjab National Bank's Mumbai head office has confirmed that there is a backlog in the loan granted by the bank's Trivandrum Medical College branch. However, no issues have been reported with other banks.

The employees are arguing that the government transfers the repayment amount from their salaries to the banks through Spark, and therefore, there should be no backlog of payments. The scheme was halted in 2017 due to the financial crisis, but the repayment amount is still being deducted from salaries.

The employees have registered the documents in the Governor's name and submitted them to the DPO, and will not be able to retrieve the documents without settling the loan. The situation has left the employees in a difficult financial position, and they are seeking clarification and resolution to the issue.

Remaining money: 7.34 lakhs
Amount demanded by banks: 40 lakhs
Rs 17 lakhs: Loan taken by teacher in 2017
Rs 15800: Money deducted from salary every month for loan repayment
7.34 lakhs: The remaining amount to be repaid is as per the government's Spark document
40 lakhs: The amount demanded by the bankers
Loan term: Till 2032

HBA loan
The House Building Advance (HBA) loan is a housing construction scheme offered by the government with interest subsidy. Under the scheme, the loan is provided to employees who have completed five years of service by scheduled banks and other financial institutions. The loan is available at an interest rate ranging from 6% to 9%.