SRINAGAR: Celebrating the eighty-four years of public trust on its foundation day, J&K Bank today fondly remembered its founder Maharaja Hari Singh – ruler of the erstwhile state of Jammu & Kashmir – in a function held here at its corporate headquarters.
Presiding over the commemorative function attended by the Bank’s General Managers, Deputy General Managers, and other senior officers besides Divisional and Zonal Heads from across the country, who joined through VC mode; MD & CEO Baldev Prakash paid homage to Maharaja Hari Singh for his far-sighted vision. As a mark of love and respect, he garlanded the portrait of Maharaja Hari Singh and paid his respects to the founder of the Bank followed by all the General Managers and Deputy General Managers present at the function.
Speaking after the cake-cutting ceremony, MD & CEO Baldev Prakash said, “In the late 1920s, Maharaja Hari Singh Ji concluded that lack of access to credit and absence of institutional support has led to the economic deprivation of the people of J&K. He conceived of establishing a kind of central Bank for J&K, which after extensive discussions and reasoning materialized on this date i.e. 1st of October in 1938 into Jammu and Kashmir Bank Ltd – and what a coincidence it is – that momentous day 1st October 1938 also was a Saturday.”
“On this day, we are all here representing the entire J&K Bank Family to pay glowing tributes to this great son of J&K soil, who had the vision and foresight not only to look beyond his domain of rule but to ensure that successive generations of the people of his erstwhile state had the institution and wherewithal to earn, grow and prosper,” he added.
MD further said that with the trust of all its stakeholders including around 20 million account holders, over 2500 business touch-points, and a business of almost 2 Lac Crore; the Bank is marching ahead confidently to carry forward the legacy of its visionary founder Maharaja Hari Singh.
Attributing the achievements so far to the staff, MD & CEO asserted, “This day actually belongs to our staff in Zones and Clusters to the last man in the branches serving the people, whose commitment and hard work has helped the institutional to realize its goals.”
Notably, a two-minute silence was also observed on the occasion to commemorate all the members of the J&K Bank Family who have served the institution during the last 84 years and left for their heavenly abode.
Earlier, while terming the day as momentous for the Bank in his remarks, General Manager Sudhir Gupta also paid great tributes to Maharaja Hari Singh for laying foundations of the great institution that, he said, has withstood multiple challenges and changes while serving and empowering the people financially.
General Managers and Divisional Heads also highlighted the vision and far-sightedness of Maharaja Hari Singh and pledged to carry forward his great legacy along with Zonal Heads who also reiterated their commitment to achieving the Bank’s envisaged annual business goals.
