New Delhi/Ghaziabad: Banking officials in Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh, have revealed that a staggering Rs 275 crore is lying unclaimed across 6.45 lakh dormant accounts in local banks.

Budhram, the District Lead Bank Manager of Ghaziabad, explained that these accounts have been inactive for at least 10 years, with the account holders either untraceable or deceased. In many cases, their families are unaware of the existence of these accounts.

“When an account remains dormant for an extended period, banks attempt to contact the account holder’s address and notify the family. If the family is no longer at that address, banks make efforts to trace them by reaching out to people in the area. After verifying the claimant’s documents, the bank releases the funds,” Budhram said.

The Union Finance Ministry is currently running a nationwide Unclaimed Deposit Campaign, which began on October 1 and will conclude on December 31, 2025. The campaign aims to raise awareness among depositors and their heirs about dormant accounts.

Pankaj Kumar, Regional Director of the Reserve Bank of India, stated that the initiative helps families track accounts that have become inactive due to reasons such as death, oversight, or forgetfulness.

As part of the campaign, authorities in Ghaziabad have received 802 claims from 16 banks amounting to Rs 15.59 crore, and these applications are being processed.

Unclaimed deposits generally fall into two categories: cases where families are aware of the funds but have not withdrawn them due to missing documents, and cases where relatives are unaware of the accounts after the holder’s death. Accounts that remain dormant for 10 years are classified as unclaimed.

The government is encouraging citizens to check if they have unclaimed funds through the RBI’s UDGAM portal, where users can search for dormant accounts by entering basic identification details. If any unclaimed amount is found, individuals can approach their bank to initiate the withdrawal process.