West Bengal government Thursday emphasised on a culture of creating entrepreneurs in the villages saying it will result in creation of jobs at the grass root level.
For providing marketing linkage of Self Help Group (SHG) products, state SHG & Self Empowerment Minister Sadhan Pande said the government is opening counters in different towns as one-stop shops allowing entrepreneurs to market their products directly to buyers.
"The government is stressing on creating employment opportunities within villages. Schemes such as Muktidhara, Swami Vivekananda Swanirbhar Karmasansthan Prakalpa have been devised to promote entreprenuership," Pande said at an ICC organised event.
The objective of Muktidhara scheme is to create and maintain sustainable livelihood of SHG members by training them and help them get bank loans.
The Swami Vivekananda Swanirbhar Karmasansthan Prakalpa scheme envisages generation of self-employment through promotion of tiny scale units of production, manufacturing, trade, service or any other sector.
The minister said the government is providing subsidy up to 30 per cent on loans provided to SHG members.
State Labour Secretary S Suresh Kumar mentioned about the Samajik Surakshaya Yojana Scheme where beneficiaries through a small monthly contribution of Rs 25 can get various social benefits.
"The SHGs need to diversify their products from handicrafts towards items of daily consumption such as horticulture, animal husbandry and fishery. The government, can make microfinance a more attractive source of funds if it can subsidise the interest rate on loans provided to MFIs," state Chairman of the Association of Microfinance Institutions A K Maity said.
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