SEMFEX-II scheme has been promoted with the assistance of National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD). It provides refinance to banks for financing for development of agriculture and allied activities, such as minor irrigation, farm mechanisation, mushroom cultivation, dairy, poultry, sheep and goat rearing, fisheries, plantation and horticulture agri-processing units including food processing, forestry, wasteland development, etc. NABARD supports bio-gas industries, small scale industries, tiny, cottage and village industries handloom and handicrafts and service sector activities in rural areas. Under this scheme, interest free Soft Loan Assistance for Margin Money (SLA-MM) under farm sector is provided. Refinance assistance is also available to transport vehicles. Ex-servicemen Transport Corporation, registered society and other institution can be formed to acquire a maximum of 30 transport vehicles under the SRTO Scheme.
SEMFEX-III scheme has been launched to help rehabilitate the ex-servicemen and widows to undertake rural industries. The scheme is operative in collaboration with the Khadi and Village Industries Commission. There are 110 rural industries including service sector activities which have been identified viable for financing to ex-servicemen and widows. Under this scheme ex-servicemen will be considered as a special target group and their loan cases will be sanctioned on preferential basis. The facility of margin money grant will be at the rate of 30 per cent of the project cost upto rupees 10 lakh and above this amount upto rupees 25 lakh it will be 10 per cent of the remaining cost of the project. It means that an amount of rupees 3 and 4.5 lakh would be provided as grant subsidy for the loan amount of rupees 10 and 25 lakh respectively.
The borrower would be required to invest his own contribution (5 percent) of the project cost and the remaining 95 per cent of the project cost would be sanctioned by the KVIC/KVIB/banks. All the schemes within the purview of KVIC are financed through the State Khadi and Village Industries Boards or banks but in some cases the project can also be directly financed by the KVIC head officer, Mumbai. However, such cases will be admissible only after prior approval from KVIC. In case of bank finance scheme the KVIC has already placed a lumpsum deposit of margin money in advance with the corporate officer of each bank of a nodal branch designated by the bank in savings bank account in the name of KVIC. The lending institution would be fully responsible for recovery of consortium bank credit.The ex-servicemen can also avail free training facilities at the KVIC training centres. Eligible ESM and widows desirous of getting loans will have to apply to the concerned Zila Sainik Board/ Rajya Sainik Board (ZSB/RSB) on the prescribed form.
Lt Col HS Oberoi
New department to look after ESM
Self-employment Schemes for ESM and Widows
DGR, MOD: SEMFEX I/ II/ III
Comment: Excellent Self Employment opportunities for the ESM. One wonders how many widows and ESM have availed of this facility? How popular and attractive is this scheme? What methods are adopted by the Regimental Centres, Veteran Organisations and IESL to popularise these schemes? Or are these schemes only on paper?
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