The Government has also sent a letter to cooperative banks asking them to waive off interest and about a one-time loan settlement.
The government has assured to provide relief to 90 per cent of mining impacted people by December-end.
Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar on Tuesday chaired the meeting of banking institutions including cooperative, nationalized, urban banks and financial institutions to chalk out a way for these borrowers, whose loan and interest runs into around Rs 1,000 crore.
Addressing media after the meeting, Parrikar, claiming that the banking institutions are ready for waiver of interest and other settlement, said that the institutions have resolved to write to the RBI to relax certain norms so that the adjustments can be worked out to make the repayments easier and affordable.
“Banks have some technical difficulties. Today we have adopted resolution asking RBI to address these technical difficulties. If required, the State government will also seek
intervention from the RBI which has rigid guidelines. We have requested them to relax certain norms,” the Chief Minister said.
He said that the government is in the process of drafting a proposal for them which would be announced on July 24, during the ongoing State legislative assembly session.
“Nowhere in the country has the government intervened to resolve the financial problem of the people who are affected in this manner. The meetings are getting results but to see what exactly are the results and what the government is doing, you will have to wait for July 24,” the Chief Minister said, adding, ‘The amount collected from e-auction would be used for rehabilitation of mining affected’.
Parrikar, also the State Finance Minister, said that besides banks offering concessions like interest waiver or certain percentage of principle amount waiver, government has decided to help those who are ready to pay the entire amount upfront after the concessions. “Solution will be provided to everyone but priority would be given to the people who are ready to pay the amount upfront. It’s like a one-time settlement,” he said.
The Chief Minister said that the government will provide relief to each and every person who is impacted with the ban on the mining industry. “I will provide relief to each and every person who is impacted by mining provided he can prove to me that he is impacted. If an auto spare part shop which has suffered due to stoppage of mining needs help, it would be provided to him but he will not be on the priority list. Step by step help will be provided and by December this year at least 90 per cent of the population who are impacted would be covered,” he announced.
The Chief Minister said that the nationalized banks have indicated that they will bear 30 per cent of the principle and waive off the interest up to September, this year (when the mining is expected to resume). “We have requested them to waive off up to 50 per cent. Once that amount is identified the government package will step in,” the Chief Minister explained.
He said that the total loan is around Rs 800-1,000 crore-with principle amount being Rs 184 crore with urban banks, Rs 40 crore with cooperatives and Rs 300 crore with nationalized, In addition Rs 150 crore is interest.
