The State intends to approach the Centre with a request for treating the cooperative banks on par with nationalised banks with respect to repayment facility for education loans.
This was among a number of proposals that the Chief Minister, Mr Oommen Chandy, announced here on Wednesday as a gesture towards borrowers with cooperative banks.
CENTRAL SCHEME
This is based on a scheme that the Centre had formulated for the purpose and originally intended to apply for loans given by nationalised banks under which interest payments would commence only after the student completes his education.
The State Government would now seek extension of this facility to education advances made by the cooperative sector also, and with retrospective effect.
Similarly, he said that cooperative banks must be allowed the facility to write-off the loan in the unfortunate event of death of either the head of the family or the student during the loan period.
These decisions have been taken on the basis of a number of petitions received during the mass contact programme of the Chief Minister.
RISK FUND
In another initiative, the State Government proposed to expand the scope of the Cooperative Risk Fund scheme. The scheme allows write-off of loans in the event of death of the borrower during the tenure of the loan. The waiver is now sought to be made applicable in case of death even after the term of the loan.
The Risk Fund Scheme is expected to benefit a number of people who, having not been able to repay the loan in time, had met with untimely death after the loan period ended.
PRT SYSTEM
In another decision, the Cabinet allowed cooperative societies to write-off penal interest on loans taken by those belonging to poorer sections of society if they are interested in a one-time settlement.
The Cabinet also gave in-principle approval for introducing the personal rapid transit (PRT) system designed for swift travel in congested areas, narrow roads, and busy thoroughfares using an elevated guide way.
Inkel, a State-owned infrastructure facilitator and the nodal agency for preparing a project report, has since given a presentation on the new urban transport system.
NEW COMPANY
A new company modelled on the Cochin International Airport Ltd would be formed for implementing the project, Mr Chandy said. Fast-growing Thiruvananthapuram is one of the cities where the PRT is likely to be introduced.
The Minister explained that surveys were being conducted in various cities in the country for implementing this system. In Amritsar, construction work had already started.