Staff Reporter
ITANAGAR, Mar 5: Arunachal NGO & Entrepreneurship Forum (ANGOEF) chairperson Taba Yall Nabam asked banks in the state to take early steps to ease the loan process, so that beneficiaries under various central and state-sponsored schemes can borrow money without any hassle.
She said this during a ‘workshop-cum-panel discussion’ conducted by the ANGOEF at Dorjee Khandu Convention Centre here on Thursday. The workshop was conducted as part of the ongoing weeklong second edition of the state-level exhibition being organized by the ANGOEF, which will conclude on 7 March.
Nabam advised youths and potential entrepreneurs to form self-help groups (SHG), and suggested to those who plan to form cooperatives to get registered in order to avail loans under various central and state government-sponsored schemes.
Stressing the need for innovation in various areas of employment generation, Nabam said, “Tourism is one such sector which has many possibilities of income generation. Our youths can take up projects under this sector and become successful entrepreneurs.”
She urged the industries department to conduct training programmes on topics such as bookkeeping and market survey for the entrepreneurs in every district of the state.
Earlier, responding to queries from the participants, Apex Bank Managing Director Tsering Thongdok enumerated the loan facilities which are currently available at lead banks, and advised all to form SHGs and cooperatives to avail loans.
He especially advised the state’s farmers to form farmer-producer organizations, and urged farmers and weavers to avail the benefits under the kisan credit card and the weaver credit card schemes.
Industries Deputy Director Goli Angu advised potential borrowers to ensure that they provide a proper detailed project report against their projects while seeking loans from banks.
He explained how to register for Udyog Aadhar, which is a unique identification number provided by the union micro, small & medium enterprises ministry for small and medium enterprises.
SBI Itanagar Manager, Soibam Ranjit Singh, informed about the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi, “a central sector scheme with cent percent funding from GoI,” and said that under the scheme loans are granted to beneficiaries on their producing proper land certificates.
NABARD Itanagar Assistant Manager, Baidnath Singh, highlighted the assistance provided by the NABARD to entrepreneurs and rural artisans, such as providing them with marketing support for their products, conducting exposure tours, etc.
Singh also informed the participants about the Arunachal Agri Startup Scheme, an MoU for which was signed between the NABARD and the state government on Thursday.
Proprietor of Yupia-based M/s Akaa Creations, Taba Akaa Nabam, and the Arunachal Pradesh Rural Bank’s (APRB) Hage Apa also spoke.
The programme was attended by, among others, representatives from the SIDBI, the NEDFi, the Apex Bank, the APRB, and the NABARD regional office, besides the KVIC’s Northeast in-charge, the industries director, the Arunachal Chamber of Commerce & Industries secretary, the skill development director, and several entrepreneurs.