VIJAY DEO JHA
Ranchi, March 3: The Jharkhand government has announced the Guruji Credit Card Scheme for students of the poor and deprived category who are unable to pursue their higher education due to the lack of loan facilities. State Finance Minister Rameshwar Oraon who tabled the annual budget of Rs 1,01,101 crores during the budget session of the assembly on Thursday informed about the scheme.
“It has come to the notice of the State Government those poor students of Jharkhand are being deprived of getting higher education from the best institutions due to lack of money. Banks are also expressing their inability to provide loans without mortgages. Therefore, the state government proposes to start the Guruji Credit Card Scheme to remove the obstacles in the higher education of the students of Jharkhand,” the minister said.
The scheme has apparently been named after JMM patriarch Shibu Soren who is famously referred to as Guruji. The tribal students of Jharkhand will be hugely benefited from this scheme. Due to the stringent tenancy laws namely the Chhotanagpur Tenancy Act and Santhal Pargana Tenancy Act, tribal students always face problems in obtaining loans from banks through mortgages.
Besides, the government has extended the ambit of the Marang Gomke Jaipal Singh Munda Overseas Scholarship Scheme. Earlier, under this scheme, the state government sent tribal students to top universities like Cambridge University and Oxford University to pursue higher studies. Now under the scheme students of scheduled caste, minority community and OBC will be eligible for the benefit.
