What a difference a day makes

Victim has loan recalled over technicality: he’d applied 24 hours after the RMA deadline

Wamrong Fire 2009: Claiming an oversight, Bhutan development bank limited (BDBL) has recalled a loan amount of Nu 0.5M from a 2009 fire victim in Wamrong town, who had sought loans to reconstruct his house.

The BDBL officials claimed they misread the date the person had applied for loan approval.

“We read it as March 8, the date beyond which we cannot release construction loans applied for, as per the guidelines royal monetary authority, but it was actually March 9,” an official said. 

Of the total Nu 1.5M loan that was approved, while the Nu 0.5M that was released was recalled, issuance of the rest was also cancelled. 

However, fire victims looking to re-construct houses by seeking loans said the BDBL branches in Wamrong and Trashigang had earlier decided to release loan to the fire victims, irrespective of the amount. 

Following that, about four more fire victims began processing loan for amounts totaling to Nu 3M. 

Sonam Thinley, from whom the loan was recalled, said he was told the head office had asked those at the branch offices to stop further release of loans. 

He had fetched labourers from India with the loan money he received.

This sudden move has left some fire victims, who have been living in temporary shelters since October 2009 after a fire engulfed their homes, confused.

Only five of the 11 houses the fire razed to ground have been able to start re-construction.  While they are stuck halfway, owing to a lack of housing loan from financial institutions, rest are yet start off.

“We were so relieved with the news of release of loan, but now it’s back to square one,” Lhamo Yuden Tshering said, adding, without the loan, none of the households would be in a position to complete the constructions.

She said, with the widening of Trashigang- Samdrupjongkhar highway drawing closer, they would need to move out of their temporary homes sooner since it was just next to the road.

Another resident, Nungney Dema, said they had to let some of the labourers go, since they didn’t have money to retain them.

Others said BDBL or other financial institutions should release loans, at least for those, who are desperate, after studying the cases.

By Tempa Wangdi