Don’t hesitate to give loans to SHGs led by credible spiritual leaders: Nirmala Sitharaman
Don’t hesitate to give loans to SHGs led by credible spiritual leaders: Nirmala Sitharaman
NEW DELHI: India’s Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday lauded self-help group movements led by religious and spiritual leaders and advised banks to give up any hesitation in giving loans to such groups backed by credible leadership.nnWhen you have social, religious and spiritual leaders leading the (self-help group) movement, banks find easy to find credible clients, she said.nn
Smt @nsitharaman lights the ceremonial lamp and inaugurates the International Conference 2019 on SHG Movement by Shri Kshethra Dharmasthala Rural Development Project, in Bengaluru, Karnataka. Shri @BSYBJP, Hon'ble Chief Minister of Karnataka is also present. pic.twitter.com/kambS78QJV
— NSitharamanOffice (@nsitharamanoffc) October 30, 2019
nnShe was speaking at the inauguration of the four-day international conference on self-help group movement, organised by the Shri Kshethra Dharmasthala Rural Development Project (SKDRDP).nnSitharaman was all praise for the SKDRDP led by Dharmadhikari of Dharmasthala Dr D Veerendra Heggade, which has raised Rs 4.5 lakh SHGs in Karnataka involving 4.2 million families.nnGood institutions, good banks, NABARD and SIDBI together with Dharmadhikaris can do miracles for our society, she said.nnThe finance minister said the government launched the Mudra loan to encourage entrepreneurship and majority of its beneficiaries were women, who get loan without any security.nnAdvising banks to recognise the social, religious and spiritual leadership, which can give them institutional strength they were looking for, she asked them to give up hesitation in giving loans to such groups backed by credible leadership.nnWhen the government comes up with loans like Mudra where initial hesitation among institutions will be, O My God! Government wants to give loans without security! Banks are finished! she said.nnNo, banks are not finished. Banks can come before you and say, It’s successful. People are returning the money. Poverty alleviation is being credibly addressed. So it works, Sitharaman said.nnShe recalled the budget tabled by her in July in which the government announced lona up to Rs one lakh for women under the Mudra scheme.nnSource: Press Trust of India
