Rangareddy: There is increasing concern about the rising unemployment among minority youth in Telangana. A debate has started about the T-Prime scheme, which has not been implemented for the past six years. The Telangana Chamber of Trade and Industrial Promotion (TCTIP), a group that supports business and industry among minorities, is questioning the delay in starting this already approved program.
The T-Prime scheme is similar to the existing T-Pride scheme, which supports SC/ST and disabled entrepreneurs. T-Prime would offer bank loans of up to Rs. 2 crores to minority youth, with a subsidy of 40% for women and 35% for men. This scheme could help young people start businesses in many sectors like hotels, agriculture, construction, and healthcare.
According to TCTIP, many young people are eager to build careers in the industrial sector and want to start their own businesses. However, due to a lack of resources, many are either struggling to set up their startups or are forced to leave the country to find work and support their families.
TCTIP Director AbulFateh Syed BandagiBadshahQuadri expressed frustration, saying, “The T-Prime scheme was approved nearly six years ago, but the government has not supported it at all.” He believes that if the government had acted on the scheme, many minority youth could have benefited by now.
The TCTIP and the Mohsin-e-Insaniyat Foundation (MIF) repeatedly asked the government to introduce the T-Prime scheme, similar to the T-Pride program that has been helping SC/ST youth for 15 years. In 2018, the government approved their request and issued G.O.Ms No.16 on March 13, 2018, but the scheme was never implemented. BandagiBadshah, who is also Secretary of MIF, criticized the government, saying no real efforts were made to launch the program.
Engineer KhajaBahauddin Farooq Naqshbandi, Vice Chairman of TCTIP, echoed these concerns. He pointed out that the T-Pride scheme has been active for 15 years and has been extended twice. He expressed disappointment, saying that if the T-Prime scheme had been implemented in good faith, many minority youths would have benefited by now.
In the face of shrinking job opportunities both in India and abroad, Naqshbandi emphasized the need for the government to activate the T-Prime scheme. He believes this would encourage minority youth to start businesses in various fields, especially during these challenging economic times.
