Telangana State Minorities Finance Corporation dashing hopes of minorities

Hyderabad: It is the worst cut and comes from Telangana State Minorities Finance Corporation (TSMFC). It seeks fresh applications for financial assistance but fails to clear applications that were submitted in the 2014-15 fiscal. This is, even as, the State Government is showing budgetary allocations for the financial assistance scheme.

TSMFC received around 1.53 lakh applications for the year 2014-15. It had sought applications for establishment of trade units and small scale industries. It announced to provide 80 per cent subsidy on loans up to Rs 1-2 lakh, 60 per cent for loans between Rs 3 and 5 lakh and 50 per cent for loans up to Rs 10 lakh.

However, it could not clear applications seeking loans of more than Rs 50,000 from 2014-15. There also, it only cleared 1,585 applications under 100 per cent subsidy loans, while it approved another 23,000 applications for loans in the Rs 1-2 lakh range.

It is learnt that the government has given its administrative approval for release of Rs 32 crore to TSMFC towards clearing pending applications of the loan. However, the Finance Department is taking time to release the amount.

It is pertinent to mention that Chief Minister, Mr K. Chandrasekhar Rao had also instructed the officials to clear the backlogs and seek fresh applications. During the last Assembly session, a review meeting was held in which it was decided to clear pending applications before December, but no action has been taken so far.

Mr Syed Ifteqar Hussaini, an activist, said that the government is focusing only on educational uplift of minorities and ignored their economic development. TSMFC sought applications for financial assistance under bankable one-time subsidy scheme but failed to clear it, which exposes the indifference of the government.

Those who had applied for loans lose faith in the government. He said that in the first stint of TRS, the portfolio of Minorities Welfare was held by none other than the CM himself but minorities could not get any tangible benefits. The present Minister Mr Koppula Eshwar is not aware of the problems faced by the minorities, he said.