The Punjab government has decided doubling the upper limit of subsidized loans under the Punjab Employment Scheme to Rs 20 million to promote economic activities and increase employment in the province.
The decision was made in the Ministerial Steering Committee meeting of the Punjab Employment Scheme in the Finance Department, here on Friday.
The meeting was chaired by Punjab Finance Minister Mohsin Leghari, attended by Special Secretary Finance Muhammad Ali Randhawa, Secretary Industries Sohail Ashraf, MD Punjab Small Industries Corporation and representatives of Bank of Punjab, while President of Bank of Punjab Zafar Masood participated through video-link.
The government also extended the loan repayment period. Under the scheme, the borrowers would be able to repay their loan within a period of 5 to 8 years. The objective of the subsidized loans provided at very low markup was to reduce hardships of the common man by providing them with employment.
The MD Punjab Small Industries, while giving a detailed briefing on the progress of the Punjab Employment Scheme, said that 2,944 loans worth Rs 2961.55 million had been distributed under the scheme.
The highest number of beneficiaries of the scheme were applicants from Rahim Yar Khan, he said and added that apart from this, residents of Bahawalpur, Lahore, Multan and Muzaffargarh were also benefiting from the scheme.
In the meeting, proposals for re-launching the scheme along with provision of loan for purchase of logistic and commercial vehicles under the scheme and increase in facilities were also discussed.
Leghari directed the representatives of Punjab Small Industries Corporation and Bank of Punjab to carefully review the proposals presented in the meeting and launch a publicity campaign for the success of the scheme and easy access to loans for business aspirants.
