₹57 crore in bank loans disbursed to 460 SHGs

A function to distribute bank loans and welfare assistance to women’s self-help groups (SHGs) in Tirupathur district was held at a private marriage hall in Tirupathur on Thursday, under the chairmanship of Collector V. Nallasivan.

Forest Minister Ranjith Kumar, who attended the event as the special guest, distributed tractors to farmers at subsidised rates, bank credit linkage worth ₹57.55 crore to 460 women’s self-help groups to promote entrepreneurship, and various welfare assistance provided by different government departments.

Addressing the gathering, the Minister said the government had always accorded priority to women and remained firmly committed to their safety, welfare and empowerment.

He said the free bus travel scheme for women had been expanded considerably. Earlier, the scheme covered old town buses operating within a distance of 40 km. It had now been extended to enable women to travel nearly 80 km, including across district boundaries, without any difficulty.

The objective was to ensure that women could travel even to their parental homes without having to depend on anyone for financial assistance, thereby preserving their self-respect, he said.

Referring to the ‘Singappenn Loan Scheme’, backed by an allocation of ₹7,015 crore, he said the Chief Minister's vision was not merely to enable women to work for others but to help them become entrepreneurs, start their own businesses and emerge as employers providing jobs to at least four people.

Claiming that Tamil Nadu had ranked second among Indian States in terms of borrowings under the previous regime, he said the present government had adopted economical and transparent financial management, free from corruption and irregularities, bringing the State down from the second to the fifth position among States in terms of borrowings.

The government was ensuring that taxpayers' money was not wasted but channelled into public welfare schemes, he added.