Biswajeet Banerjee | The News Minute | July 1, 2014 | 9.09 am ISTIt is requiem for Uttar Pradesh Stock Exchange as its Board of Directors has decided to close it down from July 1 following directives of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI). Following this decision majority of the shareholders of the exchange have decided to exit and close down UPSE forever.The extra general body meeting was called on Monday in Kanpur. Over 300 of the shareholders who attended the meeting gave their approval to close down the Stock Exchange as per the directives of the SEBI. They also approved the exit policy.“After share holders’ approval the exit policy would be sent to the SEBI for initiating the exit proceedings. With this, it would be curtains for the Uttar Pradesh Stock Exchange,” Chairman, UPSE Board, K.D. Gupta said.The SEBI had issued guidelines asking the UPSE, based in Kanpur to raise Rs 100 crore in net worth and Rs 1000 crore as annual trading turnover.“The shareholders have expressed their inability to follow SEBi guidelines and have authorized members of the Board of Governors of UPSE to intimate SEBI about the exit of the exchange,” Gupta said.As per the procedure the SEBI would appoint a three member panel of valuers to ascertain valuation of assets of the exchange and to prescribe the mode of payment to the share holders and its brokers. The UPSE might find problems with payment of dues to defaulter brokers.Gupta said that default liability is of Rs 6 crore and board members agree the UPSE will appeal to Supreme Court against the SEBI order.The UPSE has a rich legacy. It started operation on 27th August, 1982 after it was inaugurated by the then Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee. Right from its inception it had played prominent role in the development of capital market of northern India. Though UPSE was the only Stock Exchange in whole of Uttar Pradesh, membership of this Stock Exchange was not restricted to the territories of Uttar Pradesh only. Initially it had 350 members but gradually it increased to 540 members.It started operation from a rented building in Kanpur but later was shifted to its own building in 1989. During its hey days its daily turnover was around Rs 400 crore and at one time it was one of the top three exchanges of India.