Asset tracing in India

Reserve Bank of India asks banks to label inactive accounts 'dormant'

2011-07-22T02:07:00.000-07:00

The other day I logged into one of my old bank accounts. To my surprise, there was nothing there. On enquiry, I was informed that the account has been classified as 'dormant', as I had not operated it for quite some time", this is often-heard today.

If there has been no transaction in your savings bank account for two years, except for interest payments credited by your bank, the bank will classify your account as inoperative or dormant. You will not be able to use your ATM card, issue cheques or transact in the account without reactivating it.

For the purpose of classifying an account as inoperative, both the types of transactions - debit as well as credit transactions - induced at the instance of the account holder as well as a third party should be considered. Recently, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) asked banks to track dormant accounts, so they can either be revived, or the balance can be transferred to a new account or the legal heirs. According to the RBI, there are 10 million dormant accounts in the banking system. These dormant accounts have unclaimed deposits of around Rs 1,700 crores

Fund Tracers can help the legal heirs with all legal procedures to be followed in India to claim the estate.

In order to contact us, please go to our website www.fundtracers.com and contact through that site. or email at fundtracers@fundtracers.com or fund.tracers@gmail.com

Seeking information on Mrs Elizabeth Janet Ramsay or Cowie

2011-06-08T20:58:00.000-07:00

This relates to some investments in INDIA in the name of Mrs Elizabeth Janet Ramsay or Cowie who has been deceased since last 42 years. We are looking to trace the legal heirs of Mrs Elizabeth Janet Ramsay or Cowie who can claim the INDIAN estate.

Fund Tracers can help the legal heirs with all legal procedures to be followed in India to claim the estate.

In order to contact us, please go to our website www.fundtracers.com and contact through that site. or email at fundtracers@fundtracers.com or fund.tracers@gmail.com

Rs 1,360 crore lying unclaimed in Indian banks

2011-03-08T19:31:00.000-08:00

Indian banks have over Rs 1,360 crore unclaimed amount, enough to run Central government hospitals and dispensaries for a year or provide funds to farmers under the National Horticulture Mission. Any bank account, not been operated for a decade, turns inoperative and the money is transferred to the

http://www.hindustantimes.com/images/HTPopups/090311/09_03_pg10a.jpg

bank’s suspense account. There are over one lakh inoperative accounts with Indian banks, each having on average Rs 1,350, the RBI said in a RTI reply. Over 75 % of these accounts are of savings.

Although the Reserve Bank of India has asked banks to issue notices to account holders to take back the money back along with the interest, the banking regulatory is not willing to transfer the money to the government as done in case of unclaimed dividend from the companies.

"There is no scheme under consideration of RBI whereby such unclaimed deposits in banks including those in inoperative accounts may be transferred to some government account after a specified period," said D Mahapatra, RBI’s Central Public Information Officer.

After the RTI applicant Subhash Aggarwal sought information on money in suspense accounts, the RBI woke up and issued a new circular in July 2010 asking the banks to review the accounts where there have been no operations for more than a year and inform the account holder about the same in writing.

"Banks are taking every step to ensure that unclaimed money lying with them is safe and not misused," T M Bhasin, chairman and managing director, Indian Bank told Hindustan Times. Chairman of a public sector bank said in case of any transaction, which may happen after that period, will be monitored closely to ensure that there is no fraudulent activity.

The RBI has admitted that it has received complaints of customers facing problems in operating the accounts termed as inoperative and unwillingness of the banks to pay interest on the money in these accounts.

The country top-banking regulator has asked the banks to make all efforts to locate the customer and in case, it fails to find the person, the bank should contact the person who introduced the account holder. "Banks can consider a special drive to find the whereabouts of the customers," the RBI had said.

The nationalized banks have around Rs 988 crore in inoperative banks followed by State Bank of India and Associate banks, private sector banks and foreign banks.

Article Courtsey - http://epaper.hindustantimes.com/PUBLICATIONS/HT/HD/2011/03/09/ArticleHtmls/R1360-crore-lying-unclaimed-in-banks-09032011010034.shtml?Mode=1

In case you face a problem relating to any bank accounts, We can help you in claiming the same; We can provide you with our services of tracing such assets and initiating the legal procedures in India to claim the same.

In order to contact us, please go to our website www.fundtracers.com and contact through that site. or email at fundtracers@fundtracers.com or fund.tracers@gmail.com

EPFO not sure who own Rs 36K cr

2011-02-15T21:19:00.000-08:00

The Employment Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO), which maintains the PF accounts of all formal sector employees, does not know to exactly whom Rs 36,000 crore of its corpus belongs to. The amount, part of its five-lakh-crore-rupee corpus, has been accumulating from 4.7 crore accounts that have not been updated for years. These are separate yearly accounts of individuals who, EPF officials estimate, form 25% of its 5.7-crore subscriber base.

The accounts assume significance when there is a face-off between the labour and finance ministries over the 9.5% interest rate promised to EPF subscribers about five months ago.

Raising objection to the rate for 2010-11, recommended by the Central Board of Trustees in their September meet, the finance ministry wanted an update on these accounts before notifying the higher rate.

Samirendra Chatterjee, central provident fund commissioner, told HT that the unusually long time taken for settling the unattended accounts is mainly because the authorities have to go back and forth to get the full details of subscriptions.

He said EPFO was computerising all its 120 offices and started receiving contribution forms in CDs.

http://www.hindustantimes.com/EPFO-not-sure-who-own-Rs-36K-cr/Article1-662910.aspx

fundtracers@fundtracers.com or fund.tracers@gmail.com

New a/c for 1,400cr lying unclaimed with banks

2011-01-01T20:34:00.000-08:00

NEW DELHI: Banks could lose nearly Rs 1,400 crore of cheap funds lying in unclaimed deposits with the government deciding to create a fund to park these moneys and use it for depositor education.

Funds in deposit accounts that have not been operated for more than 10 years will be credited into a “depositor education and awareness fund”, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee informed Parliament in a written reply to a question.

“The government is contemplating to amend the Banking Regulation Act, 1949 for creating the Depositor Education and Awareness Fund,” finance minister said adding that the fund was conceived in consultation with the Reserve Bank of India.

The depositors will get their money back if they make a claim later, along with interest at the rate decided by RBI.

Currently, banks treat unclaimed deposits as regular deposits. The total amount outstanding under these deposits as on December 31, 2009 was Rs 1,360 crore.

Canara Bank has over Rs 218 crore lying unclaimed while Punjab National Bank and Union Bank of India have over Rs 160 crore and Rs 100 crore in idle accounts.

The proposed depositor education fund will be run by an authority or committee constituted by RBI.

Banks will have to credit the funds into the account within three months of a dormant account becomes 10 years old.

The move will help clear the administrative burden of unclaimed deposits and also prevent their possible misuse. At the end of December 2009, there were more than one crore such accounts with scheduled commercial banks.

Recently, even the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation had decided that it will stop paying interest on accounts that had not received any contribution for more than three years.

The organisation hopes this will encourage subscribers to settle the accounts that are clogging the system.

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/banking/finance/banking/New-a/c-for-1400cr-lying-unclaimed-with-banks/articleshow/7039690.cms

More on the subject at -

http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/business/rs1360-crore-unclaimed-money-lying-with-banks-mukherjee_100469132.html

We can help you in claiming the Unclamed shares and dormant bank accounts if the holder is deceased and you are a legal heir. We can provide you with our services of tracing such assets and initiating the legal procedures in India to claim the same.

In order to contact us, please go to our website www.fundtracers.com and contact through that site. or email at fund.tracers@gmail.com or fundtracers@fundtracers.com

Unclaimed Provident Fund accounts might be Blocked

2010-08-04T21:12:00.000-07:00

As per the latest report by Business Line, close to Rs 10000 Crore lying in approximately 2 Crore inoperative accounts might be blocked. The interest from these inoperative accounts might also get distributed to the live accounts. This proposal and other decisions like Interest Rate for the current fiscal (for EPF accounts) will be decided in a CBT meeting to held in September.
A senior EPFO official told Business Line that the Central Board of Trustees (CBT) of the EPFO is expected to take up this issue at its meeting in September. With many shifting jobs and neither closing their accounts nor transferring them to the new employer, more than 40 per cent of the total accounts has gone inoperative. Moreover, the unclaimed fund has grown over time with the 8.5 per cent interest paid on the principal by the agency.

More at -

http://technofriends.in/2010/08/01/unclaimed-provident-fund-accounts-might-be-blocked-india/

We can help you in claiming the funds lying in bank accounts or shares if the shareholder is deceased and you are a legal heir. We can provide you our services of tracing the assets and initiating the legal procedures in India to claim the same.

In order to contact us, please go to our website www.fundtracers.com and contact through that site. or email at fundtracers@fundtracers.com or fund.tracers@gmail.com

Banks can not declare your account inoperative

2010-07-17T21:47:00.002-07:00

If you have a bank account that you have not operated for a long time, it is absolutely essential that you know the Reserve Bank’s instructions on ‘inoperative accounts’. That’s because there is every possibility of your bank flouting those instructions and declaring your account as ‘inoperative’ without giving you any notice and even dishonouring your cheques issued on that account. So in order to protect your interests, you need to

know what exactly the regulator says. First and foremost, the Reserve Bank says an account (both savings and current) can be treated as ‘inoperative’ or ‘dormant’ only if there are no customer-induced transactions in the account for more than two years.
It also makes it clear that if interest from a fixed deposit is being credited into the account, then it should be considered as customer-induced transaction and should not be considered as a dormant account.

More important, the RBI circular on “Unclaimed deposits/Inoperative accounts in banks”, issued on August 22, 2008 to all scheduled commercial banks urges banks to be pro-active and contact customers whose accounts have remained inoperative for over a year and find out why there are no transactions.

In many cases, accounts remain dormant when consumers change their residence or place of work. There are also consumers who keep accounts in their hometown and do not operate them regularly.

So the RBI circular asks banks to not only contact customers who have not operated their account for a long time, but also transfer the money in the account to the new account of the customer, if the customer has shifted residence (or changed the job) and opened an account in another bank.

The Reserve Bank also mandates that banks inform customers before declaring an account as dormant and give the account holder sufficient time to operate the account. It’s only when all such efforts fail, should an account be declared as inoperative.

If the customer contacts the bank after an account is declared as dormant, the bank should facilitate reactivation of the account after verifying the signature and the identity of the account holder.

While doing so, the bank should ensure that the customer is not inconvenienced and there should not be any charge for activation, the RBI says.

Yet, you find banks exploiting the ignorance of consumers about these guidelines and violating them with impunity. Here is an example

More at -
http://epaper.hindustantimes.com/PUBLICATIONS/HT/HD/2010/07/18/ArticleHtmls/Consumer-Focus-Banks-cant-declare-your-account-inoperative-18072010007002.shtml?Mode=1

We can help you in claiming the funds lying in bank accounts or shares if the shareholder is deceased and you are a legal heir. We can provide you our services of tracing the assets and initiating the legal procedures in India to claim the same.

In order to contact us, please go to our website www.fundtracers.com and contact through that site. or email at fundtracers@fundtracers.com

No takers for Rs 1,200 cr with banks

2010-01-07T19:30:00.000-08:00

Unclaimed deposits on the rise at banks.

MUMBAI: Unclaimed deposits worth Rs 1,188 crore are lying with Indian banks in 1.92 crore inactive or dormant accounts as of December '08, according to the data released by the Reserve Bank of India recently.

Though they continue to remain in the banks' books as liabilities there is no one claiming ownership for these accounts.

An account is classified as ‘dormant’ if there are no transactions for more than two years. Money lying in these accounts are classified as unclaimed deposits if no one comes forward to claim ownership for at least 10 years.

More at.....

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/No-takers-for-Rs-1200-cr-with-banks/articleshow/5320658.cms

In case any one needs more information regarding unclaimed dividends or shares, write to us at
fund.tracers@gmail.com.

Old & Missing Indian Company

2009-12-24T07:26:00.000-08:00

Share Certificate of The Rampur Industries Limited, a company incorporated in Rampur state, a princely state in United Provinces, now Uttar Pradesh. The company was incorporated under the Rampur State Companies Act. The said act was abrogated when the Companies Act was passed by the parliament in 1956.

Note the Revenue stamp on the certificate is Rampur State. The certificate is dated 15th February 1944.

The Reverse side of the certificate details the dates for Monies paid for Application & Allotment of shares as well as the calls on the monies on the shares. The details of transfers are also mentioned.

The images are courtsey Sh Piyush Rach

If any one wants a view on any old share certificate, they can always write to me for an opinion. The mail for writing in is -

fund.tracers@gmail.com

Images of Old Share Certificates of Indian Companies

2009-10-21T01:18:00.000-07:00

The Burrakar Coal Co Limited

Part of the Managing Agency House of Bird & Co, it was one of the premier Coal comapnies in eastern India, in Asansol Midnapur Jharria Belt. The company is now inoperative, its assets having been nationalised by the government in 1975.

Stock Certificate dated 3rd January 1945 of The Northern India Oil Industries Ld, a company incorporated under the Indian Companies Act 1913. Registered in United Provinces, now Uttar Pradesh.

Stock Certificate dated 7th April 1947 of Metal Industries Ld, a company incorporated in 1928, under the Indian Companies Act 1913. Registered in Shoranur, S Malabar, now Kerala.

The Indian Standard Wagon Company Limited

Promoted under the Indian Companies Act of 1913, the Company was part of the agency House Martin Burn Limited, an engineering conglomerate in Eastern India. Following its nationalization in April 1975, this company was merged with Burn & Co, another engineering giant to form the Burn Standard Co Limited.

The History of Burn Standard Co Limited dates back to 1781, when Burn & Co. was established on the West side of River Hooghly in Calcutta.

Share certificate dated 29th June 1962 in the name of United Industrial Bank Ltd.

The India Paper Pulp Company Limited

Promoted under the Indian Companies Acts of 1913, the Company was part of the leading agency House of Eastern India, The Andrew Yule Group.

Share certificate dated 8th October 1955.

Foreign nationals did buy shares and stocks in India

2009-08-02T17:56:00.000-07:00

Foreign nationals did buy and sell shares in Indian companies. Image of original share certificates of many such companies are enclosed.

As per the certificates, the original allotees/holder were British nationals. The dates range from 1900 to 1963. Subsequently, these shares were sold to others but definitely it established that the foreign nationals esp British did participate in the stock market activity.

Alcock Ashdown & Co Limited

Originally, a British owned company , incorporated under the Companies Act of 1862.
It was originally owned by Turner Morison group and which went into liquidation, in mid 1970s.

One of the yards was situated atBombay next to Mazagon Dock Ltd. (MDL) engaged in ship building and ship repair and other engineering activities. The second yard was situated at Bhavnagar, The Company went into liquidation during the period 1969
to 1974 and was taken over by the govt in 1975
Share certificate dated 16th April 1963 in the name of John Leslie Boyer, Esq & Jeremy William Tait, Esq

The Howrah Sheakhala Light Railway Company Limited

Promoted under the Indian Companies Acts of 1882, the Company was part of the agency House Martin & Company, which later on became the Martin Burn Limited
Share certificate dated 2nd April 1900 in the name of Sir T C Mowden of Heyderabad

In case you need more information, please contact us through email - write to fund.tracers@gmail.com

Foreign nationals did buy shares and stocks in India

2009-08-02T17:39:00.000-07:00

Foreign nationals did buy and sell shares in Indian companies. Image of original share certificates of many such companies are enclosed.

As per the certificates, the original allotees/holder were British nationals. The dates range from 1900 to 1963. Subsequently, these shares were sold to others but definitely it established that the foreign nationals esp British did participate in the stock market activity.

The New Victoria Mills Co, Limited

Promoted in United Provinces (now Uttar Pradesh) under the Indian Companies Act of 1913.
Share certificate dated 14th May 1943 in the name of James Gordon Esq, of Scotland

The Empire Jute Company Limited

Promoted under the Indian Companies Acts of 1882 and 1910, the Company was part of the agency House McLeod & Company
Share certificate dated 10th September 1934 in the name of Calcutta Discount Co Ltd.

The East Indian Coal Co Limited

The Company was part of the agency House Jardine Simmer & Co.
Share certificate of Pound 1 each, dated 15th April 1909 in the name of Charles Law Biscoe. Note the address of the investor is shown as ``C/o National Bank of India, Calcutta''.

The Equitable Coal Co Limited

The Company was part of the agency House Macneill & Co. Promoted under the Indian Companies Acts of 1882 and 1895, to exploit the coal in Asansol region of Bengal.
Share certificate dated 11th March 1937 in the name of James Macgregor Esq.

Durbhanga Sugar Co Limited

The Company was promoted in financial partnership with the Royal family of Darbhanga, whose other venture were Octavious Steel, British India Corporation and amny more
Share certificate dated 27th April 1943 in the name of Messers Fenchurch Nominees Limited of London. Fenchurch Nominees Limited is a leading Financial investor in the Global Equities market

In case you need more information, please contact us through email - write to fund.tracers@gmail.com

Some Nepalese people who are holding shares and stocks in India

2009-08-01T01:27:00.001-07:00

There are many people from Nepal who are holding shares and stocks in India but the same can be called unclaimed or unattended. The dividends on such accounts have not been claimed for a long time.

People from Nepal started investing in India towards the beginning of the 20th century. Initially money came in towards purchase of lands & buildings in Calcutta, border areas of Bihar, Darjeeling Hills etc. later on the money started pouring into the stock markets. The investors were generally the royals or those close to them; the army personnel and the business class.

These shares in Indian companies may have been forgotten by the shareholders/ or their families; they may have changed their address but forgotten to inform the companies of their change in address; the shareholder may have forgotten to tell his/her family about such investments; the shareholder might be deceased and the family/ heirs may not be aware of the legal procedures to claim the same or find the procedure cumbersome; but the fact remains that these shares are unattended - the corporate benefits on them like dividends, bonuses are unclaimed for many many years.

The shares continue to be in their names; Chances are that the shareholder may have been deceased or too old. The dividends on such accounts is outstanding for many many years. The shareholder/ legal heirs would be entitled to the same.

Some of the people in whose names investments have been found are - Piyush Raj Sharma, Prem Kumari Pandey, Pt Khagendra Raj, Narendra Singh Alay, Raj Bahadur Chipalu, Bada Maharani Gambhir Kumari, Rani Renuka Mumari, Somprasad Upadhyay, Vishnu Chintaman Bavadekar, Achyut Raj Shareshtha, Anand Raj Shareshtha, Brig Col Indra Bahadur Karki, John E J Fetz, Pushpa Kumari Panth, Krishna Prasad Panth, Raj Kumar Pitamber Shumshere, Nrip Jung Rana, Kharidar Singh Man, Col Jana Shumshere, Neetya Kumari Devi etc. But there would be many many more.

We can help you in claiming the shares if the shareholder is deceased and you are a legal heir. We can provide you our services of tracing the assets and initiating the legal procedures in India to claim the same.

In order to contact us, please go to our website www.fundtracers.com and contact through that site. or email at fund.tracers@gmail.com

History of Bombay Stock Exchange

2009-07-08T20:29:00.001-07:00

The Bombay Stock Exchange is known as the oldest exchange in Asia. It traces its history to the 1850s when An informal group of 22 stockbrokers had been trading under a banyan tree opposite the Town Hall of Bombay from mid-1850s. This banyan tree still stands in Horniman Circle Park, Mumbai. The location of these meetings changed many times, as the number of brokers constantly increased. The group eventually moved to Dalal Street in 1874. In 1875 this informal group of stockbrokers organized themselves as â€œThe Native Share and Stockbrokers Associationâ€ which, in 1875, was formally organized as the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE).

In 1956, the BSE became the first stock exchange to be recognized by the Indian Government under the Securities Contracts Regulation Act.

BSE is the oldest stock exchange in Asia, the second being the Tokyo Stock Exchange, established in 1878.

Premchand Roychand was a leading stockbroker of that time, and he assisted in setting out traditions, conventions, and procedures for the trading of stocks at Bombay Stock Exchange and they are still being followed.

Dalal Street
James M. Maclean inaugurated the Brokersâ€™ Hall in January 1899. After the First World War, BSE was shifted to an old building, near the Bombay Town Hall and in 1928, the plot on which the BSE building now stands, on Dalal Street, was acquired, and a building was constructed in 1930.

The Bombay Stock Exchange followed the familiar outcry system for stock trading, which was replaced, in the year 1995, with screen-based eTrading. BSE is presently housed in a 28-storied Jeejeebhoy Towers, where the older structure once stood: the present building derives its name from Sir Phiroze Jamshedjee Jeejeebhoy, the chairman of the Bombay Stocke Exchange from 1966, until his death in 1980.
BSE Sensex

Following is the timeline on the rise and rise of the Sensex through Indian stock market history.

1830's Business on corporate stocks and shares in Bank and Cotton presses started in Bombay.

1860-1865 Cotton price bubble as a result of the American Civil War

1870 - 90's Sharp increase in share prices of jute industries followed by a boom in tea stocks and coal

1900s

1978-79 Base year of Sensex, defined to be 100.

1986 Sensex first compiled[5]using a market Capitalization-Weighted methodology for 30 component stocks representing well-established companies across key sectors.

History of Bombay Stock Exchange

2009-07-08T20:14:00.000-07:00

Craig Jute Mills and a little story

2009-03-25T06:43:00.000-07:00

Craig Jute Mills and a little story

Sometime back, a client of mine from Kathmandu, Nepal was browsing through his attic and amongst other things that were discovered, they found quite a few file folders containing ancient share certificates, company letters and intimations regarding shareholders meetings, announcement and payments of dividends, bonuses, annual reports etc. These investments had been done by the clients' grandfather while he was doing business in Calcutta, India in the late1930s and 1940s.

For the benefit of my readers, I have put up an image of the old share certificate.

The family was quite clueless about what should be done with these certificates. The documents contained valuable information, but stored away for many years, which the family thought was junk.

A chance conversation got us talking and he wondered if we could help?

Our team got in action and we helped the family in recovering the amounts they were entitled to. Investigations, starting on a trail, lodging succession claims at courts were done for establishing the legal claim title. The procedure took over a year but the results were `worth' it.

Moral of the story: Do not throw any old bank statement or passbook or share certificate that might belong to your parents or grandparents. It may not be useless ? there might be some value, unknown to you and it is never too late to start working on tracing assets!

In case you need more information, please contact us through email - write to fund.tracers@gmail.com

Ranas hunt for ancestral treasures

2009-03-24T09:08:00.000-07:00

News story as appeared in Kathmandu Post, a leading English language Newspaper from Kantipur Publications, Kathmandu, Nepal on Feb 24 2006

Ranas hunt for ancestral treasures
BY SURENDRA PHUYAL

NEW DELHI, Feb 24 - Several descendents of the Ranas are dusting off old documents from their 'sanduks' and shelves and are arriving in India for treasure hunting. Like the descendent of Chandra Shumsher [1901-1929] who hunted shares, debentures and assets worth nearly Indian Rs 10 million five years ago, most of them are succeeding too.

Dating back to the reign of the East India Company that ended in 1947, influential Nepali rulers, governors, their relatives, 'Bhai-bhardars' had invested millions and millions of rupees -- in shares, debentures, bank accounts and prime assets such as real estate and properties -- in India. And many of them, documents obtained by the Post reveal, have succeeded in reclaiming valuable assets and properties.

The Chandra Shumsher offspring [who wants to remain anonymous], for instance, started the treasure hunt in 1995. It all started after the a Delhi assets tracer, Jiwan Lal, found annual reports of several Indian companies -- more than half of them cease to exist today -- at his Jawalakhel residence. An enquiry was held with 24 companies that existed and "19 companies confirmed that the [Rana's] shares were still there," says the young Rana.

He's not alone. The offspring of Bir Shumsher [1885-1901] became successful in reclaiming shares and "back dividends" from 40 out of the 60 companies in India, following of course, the labyrinthine process of succession. That starts with the acquisition of a succession certificate from the high court in the area.

And it's definitely worth it. In all, the Bir Shumsher descendent reclaimed 12 million Indian rupees from the companies' shares and dividends. "After selling all his shares, today he's living happily in Kathmandu," say Jiwan Lal. "He's leading a luxurious life like many of his forefathers."

Since 1994, Jiwan Lal's firm has already helped nearly a dozen Nepalis -- most of them descendents of Rana Prime Ministers [who ruled Nepal between 1846 -1950] or their close aides such as Shahs, Thapas, Acharyas, Dixits, Joshis, Manandhars and Shresthas -- reclaim treasures "illegally siphoned away" by their rich and (in)famous forefathers.
Consider these historical facts:

*Around 1850, the 'Great Rana Prime Minister' Junga Bahadur Rana established a national treasury and deposited Rs 110 million. That treasury was indiscriminately exploited. His successor Chandra Shamsher extracted 45 million rupees on two separate occasions. Bhim Shamsher [1829-1932] exploited part of that. Later, Juddha Shamsher [1932-1945] collected a large sum of donations following the 1934 earthquake - again to exploit.

*Around that time, the wage of an unskilled laborer was just Rs 0.02 and that of an artist was Rs 0.48.

*Chandra Shamser had offered Rs 800,000 in cash, silver equivalent to Rs 2.5 million, cardamom equivalent to the sum of Rs 40,000, tea leaves equivalent to 84,699 pounds, 2 hundred jackets, 12 long coats and 220 saal trees to the British rulers around the time of World War I.

*A portion of loan was however returned after World War I [1914-1918] during Chandra Shumser's reign. After that secret deal, Chandra Shumsher distributed Rs. 90,000,000 in pure silver to each of his 9 sons, and a separate amount ranging from 20 to 40 million 'silver rupees' to each of his four surviving brothers.

*The last Rana Prime Minister Mohan Shamsher migrated to Bangalore in South India, where his palatial bungalow has been turned into a museum today. Rana Prince-turned Nepali Congress leaders Subarna Shamsher and Mahavir Shamsher inherited prime properties in Kolkata. They also owned India's first private airline, Himalayan Aviation, around the 1940s. The aircraft were also used to distribute pamphlets before 1950.

Historians (Pramod SJB Rana, Dhundi Raj Bhandari, M.P. Shrestha) conclude that the Ranas and their 'Bhai-bhardars' made investments in India because much of what they owned was ill-gotten. Things started changing after democracy came to Nepal in 1950 [Falgun 7, when King Tribhuvan returned home ending his brief exile in India]. Even so their legacy remains.

And the investors were far-sighted, too. "The Chandra Shamsher offspring, for example, continues to boast an 1852 East Indian Company debenture certificate with a face value of IRS 5,000," says Jiwan Lal. "Recently, somebody at the London Auction House offered IRS 800,000 for that, but he didn't sell it."

Currently, Jiwan Lal's firm is studying some old documents produced by a Rana and a Shrestha family, respectively. The first one -- a register, dated April 1958 -- talks about a sum total investment of IRS 169,130 in several pre-1947 Indian jute mills and tea estates. The second one -- a note book believed to have been maintained in the early 1950s -- talks about clearance of IRS 426,000 plus as tax and penalty to the Indian government.

"If this guy paid so much tax way back in the '50s he could have been a multi-billionare by now," he says, seated in his north Delhi home-cum-office. But the problem is this: much of such ancient properties and investments in India have been nationalized by the post-1947 governments.

The third most interesting bounty-hunting success story involved a Juddha Shumsher offspring from one of his house-maids-turned wife, or the "C" grade Rana. He acquired nearly Indian 8 million rupees. "He's in Kathmandu these days happy and spending time playing Bridge."

Posted on Kantipur Server: 2006-02-23 20:32:30 (Server Time)

In case you need more information, please contact us through email - write to fund.tracers@gmail.com

भारतीय कम्पनीमा नेपालीको सेयर Investments in Indian companies by people from Nepal

2009-03-24T09:05:00.000-07:00

News story as appeared in kantipur, a leading Nepalese language Newspaper from Kantipur Publications, Kathmandu, Nepal on December 16 2006

भारतीय कम्पनीमा नेपालीको सेयर
लगानीकर्ता सम्पर्कबाहिर

मुराहरि पराजुली

काठमाडौं, पुस १ - कोलकातास्थित कम्पनीका एक सेयरधनीको ठेगाना कमलपोखरी, काठमाडौं लेखिएको छ । कम्पनीले हरेक वर्ष त्यही ठेगानामा पत्र पठाउँछ तर बुझ्ने व्यक्ति फेला पर्दैन । पत्र कोलकाता र्फिर्न्छ र रद्दीको टोकरीमा जान्छ । यो क्रम वर्षौंदेखि चलिरहेको छ ।

'भारतीय कम्पनीहरूबाट यस्ता थुप्रै पत्र नेपाल आउँछन्, जसको जवाफ कहिल्यै जाँदैन,' सम्पर्कमा नआएका सेयर लगानीकर्ताको खोजीमा सात वर्षदेखि जुटेका सेयर मध्यस्थकर्ता राकेश गुजराल भन्छन् ।

उनको अध्ययनअनुसार कोलकाताका २२ कम्पनीमा ४५ नेपालीको सेयर छ । नेपालीहरूले वर्षौंअघि खरिद गरेको ४० हजार कित्ता सेयरको बजार मूल्य अहिले करिब २ करोड ८ लाख रुपैयाँ पुगेको उनले बताए । कोलकातामात्र होइन, मद्र्रास र मुम्बईका कम्पनीमा पनि नेपालीको सेयर लगानी हुन सक्ने उनको अनुमान छ । 'आउँदो तीन महिनाभित्र मुम्बईमा सूचीकृत कम्पनीमा नेपालीको सेयर रहे/ नरहेको पत्ता लगाउने मेरो योजना छ,' उनले भने- 'त्यसपछि मद्रास जान्छु ।'

गुजरालले सन् १९७० अघि भारतीय कम्पनीमा विदेशीले गरेको लगानी खोजिरहेका छन् । उनका अनुसार कोलकाताका कम्पनीमा नेपालीबाहेक श्रीलंकाली, बेलायती, प|mान्सेलीको लगानी छ । 'अहिले म नेपालीको सूची लिएर आएको छु,' उनले भने ।

उनको सूचीमा कर्णेल जनशमशेर जबरा, मिनारजंग थापा, पद्मकुमारी देवी, राजबहादुर चिपालु, दिलबहादुर श्रेष्ठ, पीयूषराज शर्मा, प्रेमकुमारी पाण्डे, बडामहारानी दिलकुमारी देवी, सोमप्रसाद उपाध्याय, सिद्धिनाथ रिमाल, नरेन्द्र सिंह आलेजस्ता नाम छन् ।

बाबुबाजेले लगानी गरेको छोरानातिलाई थाहा नभएर दोहोरो सम्पर्क नभएको उनको अनुमान छ । उनको सूचीमा भएका नाम व्यापारको सिलसिलामा कोलकाता ओहोरदोहोर गर्ने, यहाँबाट धनसम्पत्ति बोकेर लामो समयका लागि बसाइ सरेका, महावाणिज्य दूतावासमा काम गरेका उच्च अधिकारी र अध्ययनलगायत काममा ५/६ वर्ष बसेका नेपालीहरूको हो ।

हालसम्म उनले बीओसी इन्डिया, बिड्ला ग्रुप, गोयनका ग्रुप, इलेक्ट्रोस्टिल कास्टिङ, जीकेडब्लू लिमिटेड, मेहता ग्रुप, टाटा ग्रुप, तितागढ इन्डस्टि्रज र सरकारी स्वामित्वका संस्थानमा नेपालीले लगानी गरेको पत्ता लगाएका छन् । 'यी कम्पनीमा एउटै व्यक्तिको १ करोड रुपैयाँसम्म सेयर लगानी छ,' उनले भने । गुजरालले यसअघि १५ कम्पनीमा रहेको नेपाली सेयर लगानी सम्बन्धित वारेसलाई हस्तान्तरण गर्न सहयोग गरेका छन् । दुईवटा सेयर हस्तान्तरणका मुद्दा नामसारीको प्रक्रियामा छन् । सुरुमा नजिकको साथीलाई सेयर नामसारीमा सहयोग गरेपछि यस्तै खाले अरू मुद्दामा रुचि बढेको उनले बताए ।

तत्कालीन कलकत्ता सेयर बजारमार्फत कारोबार गर्ने सूचीकृत कम्पनीहरू हाल नेसनल स्टक एक्सचेञ्ज र बम्बई स्टक एक्सचेन्जमा गाभिएका छन् । बम्बई स्टक एक्सचेन्जमा हाल ७ सयभन्दा बढी कम्पनीको कारोबार हुने गर्छ ।

Posted on Kantipur Server: 2006-12-16 21:55:19

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Discovered: A Raj Pistol in an Unclaimed Locker..

2009-03-24T08:53:00.000-07:00

A great story from the Times of India

MUMBAI: The British may have left us six decades ago but fascinating traces of empire continue to pop up in unexpected places. On Tuesday, when an unclaimed locker at the State Bank of India’s head office at Fort was finally opened, the authorities found a gun and a small pile of ammo: an automatic Mauser pistol and five magazines with 261 cartridges.

The locker, registered in the name of Lt A B Greenwood, also had a copy of The Times of India dated September 14, 1923.

Brijesh Singh, deputy commissioner of police (zone-I), said on Wednesday that the bank came across the little haul when it was checking on its unclaimed lockers. On January 27 this year, two carbines and 12 grenades, believed to have been stashed away by Khalistani terrorists, were found in a locker at the SBI’s Bandra branch. The SBI was earlier known as the Imperial Bank. The police believe that the Mauser pistol and the cartridges were placed in safe-keeping before Independence. Seven big cartridges, inscribed with ‘K-10 VIII’, a rod to clean the barrel, a wooden box, some documents and a holster were also in the locker. The Times of India copy has a prominent advertisement from Richardson & Cruddas, the 1858 engineering firm whose nameplate still dominates the factory shed at Byculla. It was nationalised in 1972.

After the general manager of the bank, Tarachand Walve, informed the MRA Marg police about the find, a team of policemen arrived on Tuesday morning to take possession of the goods.

From the documents available DCP Brijesh Singh provided additional details: ‘‘There was a letter from the deputy post master general to Greenwood acknowledging receipt of the two packets found in the locker. There was also a piece of paper which stated that the automatic pistol had been custom made for a Rajah (whose name is not mentioned) and that it cost Rs 300.

“The cartridges cost Rs 200, according to another receipt. The receipt also mentioned that the pistol was a present given to Greenwood,” Singh added.

Unfortunately, there are no personal papers to give us a lead to learning more about Greenwood’s identity or his address. But given that the weapon has lain peacefully in the locker for 83 years, the police have ruled out a possible conspiracy. The ISI has not been blamed.

http://www.razarumi.com/2006/10/13/discovered-a-raj-pistol-in-an-unclaimed-locker/

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Unclaimed Money: Banks may end up with Rs 1000 Cr booty

2009-03-24T08:47:00.000-07:00

24 Dec, 2007, 1430 hrs IST, Gayatri Nayak, TNN

MUMBAI: Over Rs 1,000 cr is lying unclaimed with banks in India in 1.03 cr inactive accounts. Banks term money lying in accounts that have been inactive for over 10 years as ............

for more click on
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/Unclaimed_Money_Banks_may_end_up_with_Rs_1000_cr_booty/articleshow/2646368.cms

Dividend: Claim It Before It Is Too Late

Every investor expects to earn regular and decent returns on his investment. One of the most popular instruments of investment is shares in a public listed company. It could be preference shares or equity shares, ............

for more click on
http://www.financialexpress.com/news/dividend-claim-it-before-it-is-too-late/55457/

http://www.blonnet.com/businessline/iw/2001/07/22/stories/0422d102.htm

http://www.suchetadalal.com/?id=b3f53554-228b-b11f-492e830bc258&base=sub_sections_content&f&t=Unclaimed+dividends+(18+March+2002)

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108 year old share certificate of an Indian Company

2009-03-10T07:57:00.000-07:00

Certificate of The Howrah Sheakhalla Light Railway Company Limited, issued on 10th April 1900.

The Company was set up by an existing British Managing Agency House, Martin & Co a giant in Engineeing in the early part of 20th Century. The Managing Agency House promoted a number ofrailway companies and power utilities. It is now know as Martin Burn Limited , after its merger with Burn & Co in 1946

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2008-06-24T03:21:00.000-07:00

Unclaimed Assets Owned By Foreign Nationals In India

Are you trying to trace old Indian companies or missing old companies and investments ?

2008-03-21T21:43:00.000-07:00

Unknown to many people, there are huge unclaimed funds in India that are locked up in Shares and securities of listed Indian companies, bank accounts & deposit accounts, insurance policies, properties etc. It is not just the resident Indians but even foreign nationals including nationals from Nepal, Burma, South Africa, England, Mainland Europe that are entitled to missing, unclaimed or forgotten fortunes in India

Lots of foreigners find it difficult to trace assets in India that were acquired by their family elders and ancestors. As already mentioned, Lots of people from Nepal, Burma, Africa, England, Europe, USA, Canada etc., are holding equity shares in Indian companies. These were acquired during the initial years of the 20th century till probably the mid sixties. British invested in the shares of Indian companies as well as property during the period of the British Raj – when the British were running the government, Armed forces, business houses and companies in India. Likewise, people from Nepal, Burma, Sri Lanka. Mainland Europe and Africa who had business interests in India also invested in shares, lands and buildings. Most of them may be deceased or they may have changed address and lost contact with the company but the shares still exist in their names.

Shares may become untraceable for a variety of reasons – the company may change its name, it may have been merged with another, or it may have become sick and / or gone into liquidation. Or simply the person who bought the shares or operated the bank account forgot to inform their family or records were misplaced and the family may not be aware of the same.

The person who opened and operated the account may have forgotten to tell his/her family members about the account; or may be the person moved address and forgot about the bank account. There have been instances where people moved overseas from India and lost track of their lands etc.

Contact us if you feel that you, or any of your family elders or relatives hold any assets in India – they may be deceased or may have forgotten about their investments. Register with us so that we may do a database check.

In order to contact us, please go to our website www.fundtracers.com and contact through that site. or email at fund.tracers@gmail.com

Do you believe your family has/had any wealth in India and there is no trace of it?

2008-02-02T04:04:00.000-08:00

I have done extensive research on unclaimed or unattended assets in India. These are owned primarily by persons of British origin and have been there since early Twentieth Century. Many of the owners may not be alive, and at the same time, the claimants may not even be aware that they have any entitlement in India.

In order to contact me, please go to my website www.fundtracers.com and contact me through that site. or email me at fund.tracers@gmail.com