PANJIM: With financial instability leading to failure to pay the loan amount under the government sponsored One Time Settlement (OTS) scheme, the All Goa Truck Owners Association (AGTOA) has approached banks and financial institutions seeking that the loan amount be converted into soft loans.
“The truck owners are not in a position to pay the amount at one time. So if that amount is converted into a soft loan then they can pay every month,” AGTOA President Nilkant Gawas told Herald. The proposal to change the payment option from a single amount to a monthly repayment system has been moved to various banks and financial institutions under the OTS scheme.
Gawas, said the financial condition of the truck owners is worsening and transportation of e-auctioned iron ore has not benefited them, as the rate paid is negligible. “The truckers are paid Rs six per tonne per kilometer while our demand is Rs 11.27,” he said, adding that the escalating diesel prices is making the business unfeasible.
“Under such a situation, it is not possible for truck owners to pay the one-time amount and clear the loan,” he added.
In a bid to provide relief to the truckers, the association has decided that all trucks will be covered under a group insurance scheme so that the premium would be at a subsidized rate.
As of September, 1883 mining loans of a total loan liability of Rs 140 crore had been closed through the OTS scheme. The scheme has been extended up to December 3.
As per the government Debt Relief Scheme to mining loan borrowers from financial institutions, a subsidy up to 35 per cent on the total loan settlement amount would be provided. Banks and financial institutions are granting 100 percent interest waiver from September 2012, and 40 percent waiver on principal loan amount to truck owners.
