VIJAYAWADA: Chief minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy on Monday launched third phase of Jagananna Thodu scheme under which an interest-free loan of 10,000 is provided to 5.10 lakh small and petty vendors. He paid 510.46 crore and another 16.16 crore as interest reimbursement totalling 526.62 crore.
Speaking on the occasion, the chief minister said the scheme is aimed to benefit the small and petty vendors, and artisans from the unorganised sector. The amount is for the working capital and financial assistance to support their businesses. He said so far, in the three spells, 14,16,091 people benefited through the scheme where the government spent 1,416 crore, besides interest repayment of 32.5 crore.
Terming the small scale vendors as essential service providers, the chief minister said the government is relieving them from the money-lenders who charge higher rate of interest.
He said the government is also facilitating loans from banks and upon timely repayment of loans, all the interest amount shall be reimbursed directly to the beneficiaries’ accounts.
He said the scheme is being implemented twice a year and urged the beneficiaries to repay their loans on time to avoid overdue and NPA, which could hamper the chances of availing fresh loans.
