Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Thursday distributed cheques worth Rs 5 lakh to each of the families of those, who lost their lives due to the AgriGold scam in the state.
Handing out the compensation to the people at the Interim Government Complex (IGC) at Velagapudi, Naidu asked people to be cautious with their savings and deposit them in public sector banks.
The Chief Minister doled out a total amount of Rs 5 crore, to aid the families of the victims of the multi-crore scam.
This comes after the state government had promised a compensation of Rs 5 lakh to the families of the deceased, in September last year.
Finance Minister Yanamala Ramakrishnudu, Special Chief Secretary Satish Chandra and Director General of Police M Malakondaiah were present at the event.
Around 3.2 million people in many states including Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, were duped by the AgriGold scam, which came to light in 2014.
AgriGold owes Rs 6,380 crore to over 32 lakh depositors in nine states, with Andhra Pradesh leading the list with 19 lakh depositors.
The company lured several lakh customers on the promise that their investment would come back to them with higher returns. Several 'agents' were also sent out to convince people to invest in the group of companies.
The company allegedly took this money and invested heavily in real estate, before branching out to other areas as well, and finally duping the customers.
Presently, the Dr Subash Chandra Foundation of the Essel Group has expressed interest in taking over the tainted Agri Gold group of companies, and even deposited Rs 10 crore with the Hyderabad High Court to conduct due diligence.
Meanwhile, the High Court has also dismissed an anticipatory bail petition by the director and vice-chairman of the AgriGold group of companies, T Sunil Chowdary, pointing out that he also played a key role in the tainted company, and could not escape the law.