Rs 19,000-cr chit fund schemes under probe

Chit fund schemes worth over Rs 19,000 crore involving thousands of investors are being probed by the Corporate Affairs Ministry. Lured by high interest rates, thousands of investors have paid the installments but are yet to receive the deposited money they are entitled to.

As many as 145 companies having presence in five states have been found to be involved in illegal deposit-taking activities during 2012-2016. These companies are being probed on basis of complaints filed by investors.

Investigation into the functioning of firms conducted so far have revealed that these companies defaulted on repayment of deposits, while in many cases they even diverted funds, Corporate Affairs Minister PP Chaudhary told the Parliament.

Most of these fraudulent companies have been found to be operating in West Bengal, followed by Odisha, Delhi and Uttar Pradesh.

Of 145 companies, 100 are in West Bengal. This include companies from Rose Valley, Saradha, Icore, Rupasi, Sunshine and URO group. These companies have taken deposits worth over Rs 12,700 crore from investors. 
Eight companies from Delhi and five from Uttar Pradesh, with Rs 1,800 crore worth of deposits. Odisha has reported 25 such companies, while Maharashatra has reported three companies.