TIRUCHY: Minorities welfare minister A.M. Shahjahan has said the Union government has agreed to reconsider the sanction and release of Rs. 900 crore worth, 374 pending schemes meant for minorities welfare in Tamil Nadu, and that he hoped the Centre will give its approval shortly.
He told mediapersons at Tiruchy on Saturday that he met Union minister of minorities affairs Kiren Rijiju recently in New Delhi and urged to release and sanction the 374 pending schemes for Tamil Nadu minorities welfare like development of infrastructure, educational schemes, etc.
He had also requested the Union minister to increase Tamil Nadu’s quota for Haj pilgrimage as there are 13,000 people applying for the pilgrimage of which only 5,500 are selected. Rijiju also assured that he will look into this, said Shahjahan.
He said PMJVK (Pradhan Mantri Jan Vikas Karyakram), meant for the creation of community infrastructure in areas of minority concentration, in several sectors, including health, skill development, education, women-centric projects, drinking water and supply, sanitation, sports, renewable energy, tourism, animal husbandry, was implemented by the Union government in other southern states like Kerala, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. So, he urged the Union government to implement PMJVK in full swing in Tamil Nadu also.
Stating that the Rajindar Sachar Committee had given its recommendations to address the status of the Muslim community of India, including to create a nomination procedure to increase participation of minorities in public bodies, increase employment share of Muslims, recognise degree from Madrasas for eligibility in defence, civil and banking examinations, he appealed to the Union government to implement these recommendations in toto at the earliest.
Referring to the state’s contribution towards minorities welfare, Shahjahan said it has made an initial allocation of Rs. 20 crore to provide full undergraduate tuition fee support for Muslim female students admitted under government quota; expansion of scholarships for Muslim girls from classes 1–8 up to classes 9 and 10; providing an annual grant of Rs. 2,000 to 41,384 students; and Rs. 100 crore, interest-free, revolving fund managed through the Waqf Board to develop income-generating assets (such as commercial complexes and marriage halls) on Muslim Waqf and Christian religious properties.
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