Microfinance schemes in India and their implications

      Micro-finance is the provision of banking services like accepting deposits, loans, payment services, money transfers and insurance products to the poor, low income earning sectors for their micro and small enterprises. To enable this banks and other such institutions have introduced various schemes from time to time. Micro finance through self help groups (SHG’s) is publicized as an important link to enable delivery of these services to the depth of the people. SHG’s are considered as such a vital link now that even Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and NABARD provide help to them by promoting their services or through means of re-finance or by initiating various policies and systems.

      The key components of micro finance are:

1. Micro finance has managed to penetrate into approximately 75 million households.

2. The demand for credit in the poor countries is estimated to be around Rs. 60,000 crores.

3. Against the demand a cumulative disbursement is about only Rs. 5,000 crores under all microfinance schemes.

4. Out the above disbursements the targeted audience i.e. the rural poor have only around 5% access to availing micro finance schemes.

      The various schemes provided by various bodies to provide the facilities of micro finance in India are:

Swarnajayanti Gram Swarozgar Yojna (SGSY):

SGSY program as the name Swa-rozgar i.e. self employment suggests is for the poor which has been an important component of the anti-poverty program. This program was an initiative from the government for the rural population started with effect from 1.04.1999.  Its objective is to bring the assisted families above the poverty line by providing them income generating assets. A total of 6260 SHG’S have been formed in the period ranging from 1999-2009.

Kisan Credit Card Scheme (KCC):

The instrument of KCC is one of the key products developed to improve the farmer’s accessibility to bank credit. Model scheme of KCC was formulated by NABARD in 1998-99 is being implemented in all states and union territories. About 1.94 crore kisan credit cards have been issued up to 31^st October 2001.

Subsidy Scheme:

 Subsidy scheme is basically to provide loans for attractive business plans on a subsidized rate. Depending upon the amount of loan subsidy for the same is provided. The basic subsidy provided as per this scheme would be 50% of the unit cost and maximum amount of Rs. 5,000 would be released to the beneficiaries. For loans to start up a business, to provide a service or start-up an industry the unit cost up to Rs. 25,000 a subsidy of maximum Rs. 5000 will be released.  While for unit cost above Rs. 25,000 to Rs. 1.00 lakh subsidy and margin money will be released.  For allocation of these subsidies, the district manager of the district will invite for application through advertisements in the newspaper. After which the applications will be analysed and then the banks providing these subsides will receive the applications for sanctioning of the loans for the margin money. The concerned bank will verify the feasibility and viability of the project and send the proposal for release of Margin money loan to the District office. The Committee will approve the list of beneficiaries and forward the proceedings to the head office for release of Margin Money loan and Subsidy to the Bank.

 

Land Purchase Scheme (New Scheme):

Land purchase scheme which is a new scheme is one in which the corporation purchases the agricultural land to give it to the poor landless farmers in the rural areas. The beneficiary of this scheme will receive either 2 acres of Dry Land or 1 acre of wet land. The cost of each acre of land would be around Rs. 30,000 crore out of which the beneficiary farmer would have to pay on 50% of the amount which is treated as loan at the rate of interest of 7% p.a. with a period of 4 years. The other 50% cost is treated as a subsidy and the amount is paid by the corporation. The Committee will select the beneficiary based on the proposals they receive.

These were some of the most significant schemes provided by the SHG’s, NABARD, banks or other institutions which have helped the poor to have access to credit for their development.

Akanksha Chaturvedi

Review of Literature to understand relations between sex-education and pornography

According to a research conducted by the National Union of Students (NUS) in the UK, “the majority of students view porn to find out about sex”. The survey, published on January, 2015 spoke to more than 2,500 school and university students in the UK and found 60% of respondents watch porn to get information about sex despite almost 75% saying that it creates unrealistic expectations. Friends, school, and sexual partners were listed as the top three sources relied upon for information. According to those surveyed, the topics covered in class were more biology based – with puberty, contraception, sexual health, and bodies and anatomy listed as the most commonly taught.

Another survey by Pamela Paul, author of “Pornified”, researched casual users of pornography, 80% of which were male. Paul found that pornography dictates most men’s thoughts about sex. Men who use pornography often have trouble achieving orgasm with their partner unless they are actively thinking about pornography. The pornography user is rendered impotent without pornography. A porn watcher cannot be intimate with his partner unless he actively thinks about (or watches) porn. That means they are not alone in the bedroom. He is really not present for his partner. He has introduced others into the process. Viewed pornography does more to shape values and beliefs about what sexual experience should be than anything other than sexual experience itself. The problem is that the curriculum presented by pornographers is not reality. Becoming “pornified” can diminish or extinguish the ability to engage in an intimate relationship.

Brendan Gough and Gareth Edwards in their academic research paper “The Beer Talking: four lads and a carry out of reproduction of masculinities” talk about “pornography” as an effective tool to establish hegemonic masculinity and promote the subordination of the “other”- feminine, effeminate males, and others, thus reproducing hegemonic masculinity. They discuss that pornography is a shared experience among men and is an “imagined” concept in their sexual practices. 

Ankita Bose

Power of our Subconscious Mind

(Psychology says, subconscious is the part of consciousness, which is not currently in focal awareness. The subconscious is often considered as the replacement of unconscious mind.)

You have infinite reaches within your reach. To gain them, all you have to do is open your mental eyes and behold the treasure house within you. There is a storehouse within you from which you can extract everything you need to live life gloriously, joyfully and abundantly.

You have only one mind, but that one mind possesses two distinct and characteristic functional parts. The frontier that separates the two is well known to students of the mind. The two functions of your mind are essentially different from each other. Each has its own distinct attributes and powers. Many names have been used to distinguish the two functions of the mind. These include objective and subjective mind, the walking and sleeping mind or also conscious and the subconscious mind. All of these are recognitions of this essential duality.

A magnetized piece of iron will lift about about twelve times its own weight. But if you demagnetize the same piece of iron, it will not lift even a feather. In the same way, there are two types of people. Those who are magnetized are full of confidence and faith. Others are demagnetized. They are full of fears and doubts. Their fear to go forward makes them simply stay where they are. You can be a magnetized person by using the secret.

The secret is the power found in your subconscious mind. This is the last place most people will look for it, and thus few only find it. Once you learn to contact and release the hidden power of your subconscious mind, you can bring into your life, more health, more wealth and more happiness.

You do not need to acquire this power.  You already have it. What you have to do is, just learn how to use it. The intelligence in your subconscious can give you access to wonderful new kinds of knowledge. It is your right to discover this inner world of thoughts and power. All your experiences, events and acts are produced by your subconscious mind in reaction to your thoughts. Your prayer too is answered to the universal low of action and reaction. Thought is incipient action. Within your subconscious mind you will find the solution for every problem and the cause for every effect.

Before you become skilled, you must understand the principle of subconscious mind. Take the generally accepted principle, Matter expands when heated. This is a universal truth. Similarly, whatever you impress on your subconscious mind is expressed on the screen of space as condition, experience and event. The law of our mind is the law of belief. This means to believe in the way your mind works, to believe in belief itself. Fill your mind with the concepts of belief, harmony and peace, and wonders will happen in your life.  

Sahil Shaparia    

Micro finance and its importance in the rural sector

       Micro finance as the name suggests is a banking service to enable availability of finance to the unemployed or low income group individuals or groups. The target group of individuals who mainly avail these services are small time entrepreneurs who lack access to basic banking and other related services. 

       Before the formation of a proper micro finance system people used to borrow money from informal money lenders and save their money with the informal money collectors. However it was soon realized that it is important to have a proper regulated system in place so that the low income group people could also avail the banking facilities and thus emerged the service of providing micro finance. 

       Micro finance as a term is often confused with micro credit assuming these two terms are synonyms. Instead in reality micro credit is just one aspect of micro finance. Micro finance as a whole include providing for loans, insurance, money transfers, payments, accepting deposits and remittances. The aim is to provide a varied range of services as well as products to meet all the financial needs of the individuals, households and enterprises. To meet these varied needs banks also use unconventional methods such as group lending and accepting other forms of collateral which would not otherwise be accepted.

        In the global market it is already assumed that micro finance is going to facilitate in successfully reducing poverty. Many governments and donor communities believe that liquidity constraint is the main constraint hindering the poor households. If this problem is adequately addressed it would help to curb poverty to a certain extent. Micro finance is known to not only break the vicious cycle of poverty by enabling liquidity of funds but also start up a whole new cycle of economic empowerment that leads to increased house hold well being. 

Global Market of Micro-finance

Source: Progress Microfinance – implementation report 2011

       Micro finance for rural development works on the basic concept that when these sectors have access to finance for lending, savings, insurance, housing or remittances it will help to increase income, assets, security and in turn increasing their confidence in future. The benefits of this would be better access to health facilities and education. When education is imparted deeply it improves the way banking is carried out as well as helps to control population growth.

       To conclude I would like to say that micro finance sector as it grows and deepens the more it will help for the upliftment of the rural sector since they are generally left out while providing financial services. With a little support in terms of finance from the various sectors the low income group individuals could go a long way.

Akanksha Chaturvedi