Dr Kamalesh Chandra (KC) Chakrabarty, one of the most forthright and honest deputy governors of Reserve Bank of India (RBI), passed away in Mumbai on Friday morning following a massive heart attack. He was 68. Dr Chakrabarty, a banker, who strived hard to protect consumer rights in banking, was a Trustee of Moneylife Foundation.
Considered outspoken, Dr Chakrabarty was well-known for his contributions in the field of banking regulation and supervision, championing of rights of bank customers, microfinance institutions, SMEs and restructuring of India's regional rural banks (RRBs). He was also known for his contribution towards financial inclusion and financial literacy both in India and abroad
Dr Chakrabarty often said that it took him several years to have some obvious pro-customer decisions implemented. One of these was to bar the pre-payment penalty that banks impose on home loan borrowers, to prevent them from switching to other borrowers. Since banks discriminated against existing borrowers by offering lower interest to new customers, the scrapping of foreclosure charges levelled the playing field for customers. He also stopped banks lending below their base rate and, more recently, from fooling customers with fake zero-interest loan offers during festivals.
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