This Article is From Sep 06, 2012

Government happy to give out interest free loans, says Chief Minister

Kurnool, Andhra Pradesh: Interest-free loans to women have caused a burden of Rs 1500 crore to the exchequer. However, the Andhra Pradesh government is happy about it, Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy said in Kurnool on Thursday.

He was interacting with the self-help group for women at Atmakur in Kurnool, on the third and final day of his mass contact programme called 'Indiramma Bata' (on the path shown by the late Indira Gandhi).

Earlier, the Congress government disbursed loans to women at three per cent interest but decided to offer interest-free loans up to Rs 5 lakh to encourage women, he said.

Loans disbursed across the entire country was Rs 26,000 crore, while self-help groups in Andhra Pradesh alone received loans to the tune of Rs 13,000 crore, he said.

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