Assam Government agrees to waive the loans of 1.4 million women borrowers

By: WE Staff | Wednesday, 25 August 2021

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said the scheme will have a credit portfolio of $12,000 crore, with the government spending roughly $7,200 crore. Following the signing of the MoU, the government would launch the Assam Micro Finance Incentive and Relief Scheme, 2021, which will benefit almost 1.4 million borrowers.

Chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, speaking at the event, said the plan will have a credit portfolio of 12,000 crores, with the government spending roughly 7,200 crore.

“The relief scheme will ensure continuity of micro-finance for supporting economic activities of poor households and help eligible customers in overcoming stress in the microfinance sector due to various operational reasons” he said.  

According to Sarma, the initiative encourages financial institutions to lend responsibly in accordance with RBI and industry norms in text and spirit, while also encouraging responsible borrowing and timely repayment.

According to the CM, all qualified borrowers can take up to 1.25 lakhs in loans from up to three lenders under the plan, and those who have a track record of timely loan repayment will be given a one-time bonus equal to their outstanding sum, capped at 25,000.

Similarly, the state government will compensate creditors whose bank repayments are past due but do not fall into the category of non-performing assets (NPA).

Furthermore, borrowers whose accounts have become non-performing assets (NPAs) would be required to apply using a format that has been validated and confirmed by the lender. The government will next consider offering partial or complete relief after a rigorous examination, according to the programme.