FM Sitharaman Launches ‘Your Capital, Your Rights’ Drive to Return ₹1.84 Lakh Crore in Unclaimed Funds

Financial assets worth ₹1.84 lakh crore lie unclaimed with banks and regulators. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman made the announcement on Saturday. According to her, officials must ensure that these reach their proper owners. Sitharaman inaugurated the three-month-long 'Your Capital, Your Rights' campaign from Gandhinagar, Gujarat. Gujarat Finance Minister Kanubhai Desai and bank and Finance Ministry top officials attended the event.

Sitharaman added that she encouraged the officials to focus on the three A's: awareness, outreach, and action, so that the money reaches its due owners. The first A is awareness. Inform them that your money is idle there, bring this paper, and take it. You can be ambassadors and inform people if they have not yet received their due property. Simply tell them to find their documents and register on the portal.

The minister further stated that access will be provided to the rightful beneficiaries through the RBI's UDGAM portal or through stalls set up by banks for this purpose. She said, "The third A is action, where you (officials) take action on whatever you have, such as small pieces of paper." She added that a united effort will ensure the successful campaign.

The RBI has created the UDGAM portal, through which people can locate their unclaimed deposits. Sitharaman urged officials to spread awareness among people and help them retrieve their assets through the portal or at bank stalls.

The Finance Minister explained that unclaimed funds are kept safe in banks, the RBI, or the IEPF and can be retrieved upon presenting proper documentation. If the assets remain unclaimed for a long time, they are transferred from one institution to another. Sitharaman also praised the Gujarat Gramin Bank, which had assured her that its officials would visit every village in the state to find the rightful owners of unclaimed deposits.