By Abdul Hameed, TwoCircles.net,
Mumbai: Maulana Azad Minorities Finance & Development Corporation (MAMFDC), the Maharashtra state channelizing agency of the central government’s National Minorities Development and Finance Corporation (NMDFC), has launched three new financial assistance schemes for the minorities. The schemes are meant for educational and economic uplift of the minorities in the state.
Under the new scheme of ‘Indira Gandhi Kisan Wa Mahigeer Yojna’ (Indira Gandhi Scheme for Farmers and Fishermen), farmers and fishermen from minority communities will be given a loan of one lakh rupees. Under the ‘Rajiv Gandhi Educational Loan Scheme’ minority community students whose parents’ annual income is Rs 54,500 will be given Rs five lakh (instead of earlier three lakh) in loan to meet their educational needs. The loan amount will be given in four parts: 1,50,000 each in 1st, 2nd and 3rd year while the rest Rs 50,000 in the 4th year. Earlier, the education loan was three lakh with 3% interest on it. However, the bail conditions to get the loan still remain same.
MAMFDC chairman Ameen Patel said that another scheme started by the corporation is ‘Maulana Azad Education Loan Scheme.’ Under this scheme students will be given Rs 2,50,000 as loan for one or two years provided the yearly income of their parents is Rs 2, 50,000. He made it clear that no changes have been made in the conditions required for the education loan.
Patel hopes that the amount of Rs 100 crore specified for the MAMFDC will be increased. He has been quoted as saying that seeing the good performance of the MAMFDC South Mumbai Congress Lok Sabha MP Milind Deora has requested the Chief Minister Ashok Chavan to increase the amount to Rs 200 crore.
All these schemes were introduced on May 20, the 18th death anniversary of former Prime Minister of India Rajiv Gandhi.
National Minorities Development and Finance Corporation (NMDFC), constituted in 1994 under the union Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment, now runs under the Ministry of Minority Affairs since 2005 – the year the ministry was created. It has its channelizing agency in almost all states. The basis of the constitution of NMDFC was the central government observation that minorities have not been able to obtain their share of credit from nationalized banks as per their requirement.
According to the Census 2001, minorities constitute 18% of the total population, and Muslims are 72% of this 18%.
Community-wise break-up of minority population in India
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