Cheap farm loans for diamond workers

The Gujarat government On Saturday announced a relief package for jobless diamond workers, including cheaper farm loans and a skill enhancement scheme called Ratnadeep Kalakar Yojana.

“Under the package, the government will provide farm loans to jobless diamond workers at 6 per cent interest rate against the normal farm loan interest rate of 7 per cent,” said an official from the chief minister’s office.

The second part of the package is mainly a training scheme for the workers. They will be paid a stipend of Rs 100 a day during the training, the official said. The decision comes after about 20 diamond workers threw leaflets and raised slogans from the spectators’ gallery during the State Legislative Assembly session, protesting the state’s apathy towards their problems.

However, diamond workers termed this announcement as “no package”, saying this will not help them as it is confusing. “To obtain the cheaper farm loan diamond workers will have to provide a certificate from their previous employer that he was employed as a diamond worker,” said Satyendra Singh, secretary, Socialist Unity Centre of India, Surat unit. 

“The diamond industry is an unorganised sector and no unit owner will provide them certificate of employment because that certificate can also be used to demand compensation from them.” 

The Socialist Unity Centre of India (SUCI) has a diamond workers’ committee and has been working to safeguard workers’ interests for the last few years. “This announcement is just an effort to defuse the agitation started by the diamond workers. Getting farm loans cheaper by 1 per cent will be a mammoth task for the jobless diamond workers as the question is how will they prove their eligibility to obtain that loan?,” said Arjun Modhwadia, spokesperson, GPCC.