Urban News

  • Increase font size
  • Default font size
  • Decrease font size

Loan disbursement target fixed at Rs.1.2 crore

Print PDF

Source : The Hindu Date : 19.06.2009

Loan disbursement target fixed at Rs.1.2 crore

Special Correspondent

For economic loans to minority people in Vellore district through TAMCO during 2009-10

— Photo: D. Gopalakrishnan

Xavier Arulraj, chairman of the Tamil Nadu Minorities Economic Development Corporation (left), speaking to reporters at the Collectorate in Vellore on Thursday. Vellore Collector C. Rajendran is in the picture.

VELLORE: A target of Rs.1.20 crore has been fixed by the State government for economic loans to beneficiaries belonging to minority communities in Vellore district through the Tamil Nadu Minorities Economic Development Corporation (TAMCO) during 2009-10, according to its chairman Xavier Arulraj.

He was talking to newspersons after discussing schemes of TAMCO at a meeting with prominent members of the minority communities at the Collectorate here on Thursday.

Fr. Arulraj said that the government has enhanced the maximum individual loan to be given to a member of a woman self-help group (SHG) comprising women belonging to minority communities from Rs. 10,000 to Rs. 25,000, and the maximum group loan for which the groups are eligible from Rs. two lakh to Rs. five lakh.

While loans to the tune of Rs.22 crore were disbursed to minority communities since 1999, when the corporation was established, loans to the tune of Rs.36.95 crore were given in the last two years alone. Pre-matric, post-matric and merit-cum-means scholarships to the tune of Rs.14.07 crore were given to 36,774 minority community students in 2008-09. Vocational training including training in computer applications was imparted to 8,000 candidates last year, against a target of 5,000, and 60 per cent of the trainees had secured jobs.

Fr. Arulraj said that Muslim Women’s Welfare Societies have been formed in all the districts, with seed money of Rs. one lakh each on the orders of Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi. If funds could be mobilised through philanthropists for the society, the government would provide a matching grant to the society. The interest accruing from the funds so created should be utilised for providing subsistence allowance to financially weaker Muslim women.

Earlier, addressing prominent members of minority communities, Fr. Arulraj said Mr. Karunanidhi has ordered the construction of separate hostels for Muslim girl students in all districts. One such hostel has been set up in Vellore.

In response to a complaint from Firdoz, a minority community representative from Ambur that matching grant has not so far been given to a Muslim Women’s Welfare Society set up in Ambur, Fr. Arulraj said that if the society concerned sends the proposal, TAMCO would immediately release the matching grant to the society.

“There is no problem in releasing matching grants”, he said.

Nissar Ahmed of Vaniyambadi and Eugini Fatima Mary, Principal of Auxilium College, Vellore, wanted the TAMCO to popularise welfare schemes implemented by the Corporation through awareness programmes and distribution of leaflets among members of minority communities as many were not aware of them.

C. Rajendran, Collector of Vellore, said that the Union government was planning to set up an Industrial Training Institute exclusively for the minorities in Vellore district.

Earlier, Fr. Arulraj distributed pre-matric, post-matric and merit-cum-means scholarships to students of Auxilium Girls Higher Secondary School, Gandhinagar, Vellore, Government Higher Secondary School, Sathuvachari, and Marudhar Kesari Jain College for Women, Vaniyambadi

Last Updated on Friday, 19 June 2009 05:35