The recent announcement of extending financial assistance up to ₹1 lakh to members of minority communities has had a mixed reaction, with activists seeking clarity on the modalities of disbursal and fund allocation.
The Telangana State Minorities Finance Corporation (TSMFC) that has been tasked with disbursing funds to beneficiaries is already overwhelmed as over 2.15 lakh people applied for its bankable schemes - the ₹1 lakh with an 80% subsidy component, and ₹2 lakh with a 70% subsidy component.
“Will fund release be like Dalit Bandhu in which beneficiaries receive ₹10 lakh via DBT, or be like Shaadi Mubarak, in which beneficiaries are handed over cheques?” M. A. Akram, an activist working with Yugantar, an NGO, sought to know. “There is a need for clarity.”
Another activist S. Q. Masood who made representations for extension of non-statutory benefits to Muslims on a par with SC and ST communities, welcomed the move. “This is a good development. But there is a need to closely monitor the implementation of all schemes, including this one. The GO does not mention the budgetary allocation and the number of applicants who will benefit from this.”
Senior Congress leader Mohammed Ali Shabbir criticised the move and stated that the TSMFC received over 2.2 lakh applications which had largely remained unprocessed. In FY 2015-16, more than 1.5 lakh applications were received for the corporation’s bankable schemes but for the next seven years, no calls were made for fresh applications, he stated. He said approvals might go on till the election notification, and beneficiaries would not receive funds.
According to Md Imtiyaz Ishaq, Chairman, TSMFC, the applications from the existing backlog would be processed by a screening committee comprising District Collector, and District Minorities Welfare Officer. “We will release funds to 10,000 who have already been selected. As and when selection lists come, we will release funds in a phased manner,” he said, adding that the scheme was for all minority communities, and, given the issuance of the 100% financial assistance GO, the previous 80% subsidy disbursals had temporarily been halted.
Sources told the The Hindu that over ₹250 crore was available under assistance to TSMFC head of account. The funds for the new 100% subsidy scheme would be drawn from here, they said.
Those in the know, given the upcoming elections, feel say the government is likely to release funds to beneficiaries by means of cheques. “It is possible that releases would be like Shaadi Mubarak disbursal, in the presence of leaders and revenue officials,” a source said.
According to reports, the Muslim community in Telangana has relatively lower access to credit as compared to other communities. The Telangana government-constituted Commission of Inquiry for Muslims, also known as the G Sudhir Committee, found that Muslim household borrowing was more from informal lending sources such as professional money lenders, then from formal institutions. According to the report, about 33.8% of Hindu households obtain loans from banks and cooperatives, as compared to 17.1% Muslim households.
