National Scheduled Castes & Scheduled Tribes Finance and Development Corporation, was set up on Feb. 1989 with an authorized capital of Rs.75 crores. The Govt. of India has so far released Rs.50 crores, and the balance of Rs.25 crores is expected to be released at the time of approving the Supplementary Demands. The Corporation is located in Delhi, and is functioning at present from No.8, Balaji Estate, Guru Ravi Das Marg, Kalkaji, New Delhi-110 019.
The Corporation is to function as a Nodal Institution for financing development schemes of the SC/ST all over the country. The Corporation is headed by a Managing Director, assisted by four General Managers who head four distinct and specialized Departments of Finance, Planning, Projects and Personnel & Administration. Since the Corporation is still in its infant level, being a nascent corporation hardly a year old, and the activities are still in the Planning, Formation & Evolutionary stages, shortfalls could not be quantified. However, during the first year of operation, the Corporation has achieved an excess income over expenditure to the tune of Rs.4.92 crores, with the Income at present coming from the short-term investments of the paid-up share capital with nationalized banks & public enterprises.
Schemes sanctioned: Manan toddy Tribal Plantation Cooperative Limited (MTPCL) is formed under Cooperatives Act by the Government of Kerala to rehabilitate 118 (370 adult members) freed bonded tribal families of Manan toddy Taluk in the Wayanad District of Kerala. After freedom these bonded laborers had no assets or economic activities of their own for earning their livelihood. They were mainly involved in agriculture-based activities. These people would continue to be exploited by those people who had kept them as bonded labour and skill available especially in the field of agriculture related activities, the Government of Kerala has allotted (526.26 acres) barren hill tract for growing tea plantation as the climate, soil and rain pattern is suitable for tea plantation. Government of Kerala decided to set up a tea processing factory under the control of the cooperative society costing about Rs.75 lakhs. This factory will have annual capacity of processing 5 lakh kg of made tea on single shift basis. On the basis of prevailing prices of green tea leaves and the wholesale price of made tea this factory can start working immediately and earn good profit which would contribute towards the cost of plantation also. The total cost of the project is Rs. 500 lakhs. Bihar State Tribal Cooperative Development Corporation Ltd. submitted a scheme for setting up five cooperative societies of stone cutters belonging to STs in Lapunga, Mandur. Mannan toddy Tribal Plantation Cooperative Ltd, is a society designed and created for socio-economic development of 370 adult members of 118 freed bonded tribal families of Mannantoddy Taluk in the Wayanad District of Kerala. For the purpose, the society has taken up work of tea processing factory. The total cost of the project will be 277.35 lakhs. The society applied to NSFDC for sanction of loan of Rs.37.50 lakhs to fill the gap in their sources. NSFDC sanctioned a loan of Rs.37.50 lakhs for helping the society in rehabilitation of 370 tribals. NSFDC received a proposal from “The land for Tillers Freedom,” a voluntary organization working in Tanjavur districts in Tamil Nadu for purchasing land from the local landlords and distributing it to Scheduled Castes landless families. The total cost of the projects is expected to be Rs.75.51 lakhs and 982 Scheduled Castes families will be benefitted by the project. NSFDC sanctioned a loan of Rs.46.05 lakhs for the project. The loan will be repayable in 10 Years.
Officers of the NSFDC: Lalfak Zuala Managing Director, G. Chakravarthi, General Manager (Finance), Dr SP Ram General Manager (P&A), N Manohara Prasad, General Manager (Planning & Coord), K Jayakumar, General Manager (Projects) Rakesh Dhingra, Co. Secy-cum-Finance Manager.
