PESHAWAR: The provincial government is likely to launch Pakhtunkhwa Hunarmand Rozgar Scheme in the current month. The scheme would be launched by the Chief Minister Ameer Haider Khan Hoti, sources told APP on Monday.
The scheme was announced in the annual budget for financial year 2011-12 with allocation of Rs1.3 billion to provide employment opportunities to skilled youth and reduce poverty and create income generating activities in the province.Under the scheme a loan ranging between Rs50,000 to Rs0.3 million will be granted to diploma, certificate holders from vocational or skill development centres at very soft terms of 5 per cent mark up.
The loan facility will be available for business activity in the fields of marble, gemstones, minerals, handicrafts automobile repair, plumbing, electrician, furniture, light engineering, garments, embroidery, hair-dressing, beauty saloons, leather products, information technology and all such subjects leading to economic stabilisation. Thirty percent of the funds would be reserved for females.The programme will be executed through the Bank of Khyber and will be coordinated by the Directorate of Technical Education and Smeda.
An applicant should be permanent resident of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa with valid computerized national identity card to be eligible to get the loan. The age limit is 18 to 40 years for males and extendable up to 50 years for female applicants fulfilling prescribed security/guarantee and conditions.The maximum tenure of the loan will be 3.5 years including grace period of six months and the principal loan will be recoverable in 36 equal instalments for which post-dated cheques will be obtained.
The Bank of Khyber will establish a separate a unit/department for handling the scheme. While Smeda will provide assistance in ascertaining the entrepreneurial skills of the applicant and machinery verification where requested. Similarly, the Directorate of Technical Education will assist the BoK in ascertaining technical skills of the applicant. – Dawn
