Hyderabad, October 18: BJP senior leader and former Union minister B Dattatreya demanded that the Central government should create a revolving fund by allocating Rs 50 lakh crore to provide financial assistance to all the self help groups (SHGs) across the country.
The BJP leader said he would submit a memorandum to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on the issue.
After the bitter experience with the micro finance institutions, the Central government should take necessary steps to provide financial assistance to the SHGs and take stringent action against the MFIs who were resorting to forcible collections from the loanees.
Addressing a press conference at the state party headquarters here on Saturday, Dattatreya alleged that since AICC general secretary and MP Rahul Gandhi was promoting the MFIs, the state government was neglecting the activities of SHGs and even stopped the Pavala Vaddi scheme.
“Due to the harassment by MFI agents nearly 30 people committed suicide in the state. Chief minister K Rosaiah and rural development minister Vatti Vasantha Kumar are passing the buck by blaming the RBI,” he said.
He also urged the state government to take steps for procurement of paddy in the state. He said that the government should provide Rs 500 crore to the HACA to procure paddy.
–Agencies