AIBOBOU- Affiliated to AIBOA - ESCORT SCHEME: WHEN “WELFARE” TURNS INTO A WORRY

🚨 ESCORT Scheme: When “Welfare” Turns into a Worry
Date : 01-11-2025- AIBOBOU Bureau

A Call for Transparency and Accountability in Bank-Facilitated Employee Deductions

A benevolent fund must be built on trust, transparency, and consent. Unfortunately, what’s emerging around the so-called “ESCORT Scheme” — facilitated through Bank of Baroda’s HR-Connect platform — raises serious questions on all three fronts.

⚠️ What Is the ESCORT Scheme?

Any officer, regardless of union affiliation, may “voluntarily” join the ESCORT Scheme via HR-Connect.
On the unfortunate demise of a member, a lump-sum of approximately ₹26 lakh is paid to the dependent.
Funding comes from salary deductions of participating officers — routed through the Bank’s own HR-Connect system and credited into an account operated by a particular association.
The “irrevocable” authorization leaves no option for a member to withdraw from the scheme.

💰 The ₹4 Crore Question

For a scheme designed to collect contributions and immediately pay out death benefits, logic says the account should not maintain a large credit balance.
Yet reports show a surplus nearly ₹4 crore lying idle — under custody of an association, without published audits, legal registration, or regulatory oversight.

Who is accountable for this fund?
Who monitors its interest earnings?
If the Bank’s system collects and transfers the money, doesn’t that make the institution morally — if not legally — answerable for where it goes?

⚖️ Legal and Ethical Concerns

Consent & Contract Law: An “irrevocable” authorization violates the principle of free consent under Sections 13–16 of the Indian Contract Act, 1872.
Unauthorized Deductions: Continued salary deductions without opt-out may breach Section 7(2)(e) of the Payment of Wages Act, 1936.
Regulatory Non-Compliance: If the scheme resembles an insurance or risk-pooling product, it would need approval under the Insurance Act, 1938 or IRDAI guidelines.
Conflict of Interest: Facilitating such collections through official HR channels, without Board or DFS sanction, exposes the Bank to governance and vigilance risk.

🔍 What the Union Demands

The All India Bank of Baroda Officers’ Union (AIBOBOU) has rightly sought a vigilance-cum-compliance enquiry to examine:

The authority and approvals under which HR-Connect was used for deductions;
The legal status and audited accounts of the ESCORT fund;
The absence of an exit mechanism; and
The accountability of officials who allowed such linkage.

Until the enquiry concludes, AIBOBOU urges suspension of fresh enrolments and full disclosure of audited statements to all participants.

💡 Why This Matters

Transparency in employee welfare is non-negotiable.
A welfare fund cannot become a parallel treasury or a tool for influence. Officers deserve clarity on where their money goes — and confidence that the Bank’s systems are not misused to favour any association.

“Integrity in small things safeguards trust in big ones.”
The ESCORT episode is not merely about ₹4 crore — it’s about the credibility of governance within one of India’s largest public sector banks.