Cabinet to consider NMFDC Restructuring Proposal tomorrow

New Delhi, Sep 10 (UNI) The proposal for restructuring of the National Minorities Finance Development Corporation(NMFDC) is coming up before the Union Cabinet tomorrow.

The Minority Affairs Ministry had forwarded the proposal last week itself, a senior official in the Ministry of Minority Affairs told UNI.

An expert committee had been constituted last year to look into the problems of the Corporation and suggest ways to make it play a more effective role in the development of minorities. The restructuring is largely based on its recommendations.

However, the Ministry has made some modifications in the structure suggested by the committee, which was headed by Mr Nasser Munjee, chairman, Development Credit Bank.

Its Report had suggested creation of a National Minorities Development Corporation, and having the existing NMDFC functioning as one of its two wings. The other wing would be a Waqf Development Agency.

However, the official said the idea of creating another apex organisation had been dropped and the existing MNFDC would continue to be the apex orgainsation.

The suggestion to create a Wakf Development Agency has been retained. Besides, there will one more wing which would be known as Minorities Partnerships.

As per the Expert Committee suggestion, the government could hold a 49 per cent stake in the new corporation while the private parties called minorities partnerships could have a 51 per cent share.

The main focus of the private efforts should be in the field of education, jobs and social infrastructure.

The NMDC would shed its not-for-profit status and would act as a government-owned holding company. It will also generate its own revenue surpluses to finance welfare schemes, the Committee had recommended.

The suggested Waqf Development Agency would be providing a support service to waqfs which can avail of opportunities provided by the Corporation.

The Report calls for strengthening of state channelising agencies (SCAs).It has suggested that lending and borrowing rates for the SCAs should be at the prevalent market rates so that these agencies could recover their operating costs.

The NMDFC was constituted in 1994 as a Public Sector Enterprise under Section 25 of the Companies Act.

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