Hyderabad, October 15: In the wake of a number of alleged suicides by those who have taken loans from Micro-Finance Institutions (MFIs), Telugu Desam Chief N Chandrababu Naidu today demanded that the Andhra Pradesh government waive the loans taken by the poor from the MFIs.
“We are asking the government, are you going to waive all the loans taken by poor people? Otherwise, they are going to suffer for your failure to check the MFIs. The only solution to help the victims is to waive their loans,” he said addressing a gathering at the party office here.
The alleged coercive style of functioning of MFIs led to alleged suicides of a number of poor and rural people across the state over the last few weeks. Seeking to rein in the MFIs, Andhra Pradesh government today approved a special Ordinance for the purpose and sent it for the Governor’s assent.
The State Cabinet met here specially to approve the ordinance in view of the massive pubic outcry over the harassment of the poor by the MFIs. State Rural Development Minister V Vasanth Kumar, talking to reporters, after the Cabinet meeting, declined to divulge the contents of the ordinance. “I cannot reveal the contents of the ordinance before the Governor gives his assent. Wait for 24-48 hours,” he said.
–PTI