Andhra Pradesh reopens debt, suicide probe

Andhra Pradesh is actively investigating 76 criminal cases-some that had been closed by police-against employees of lenders accused of driving over-indebted borrowers to suicide, officials said Thursday.

Andhra Pradesh, which was India's largest microfinance market, blamed a spate of suicides in late 2010 on aggressive lending and collection tactics by microfinance companies. The companies denied responsibility.

R. Subrahmanyam, principal secretary for rural development in Andhra Pradesh, said his department had sent teams to villages to assist police investigators and are scheduled to report their initial findings next Wednesday.

Some of the cases may have been closed or stalled, he said.

"If they stumble on good evidence, they can always be reopened," he said, adding that police are often overburdened and may not have always found the "correct lead."

To date there have been no convictions and after scores of earlier arrests, no microfinance company employees are currently in jail, according to Andhra Pradesh officials.