VASCO
Our problems started only after mining was stopped,” he said.“It s not that we have not applied for OTS. All barge owners have applied, but it is the banks which are creating problem to grant us the OTS,” added Jadav.He further claimed that banks are not giving correct information to the government on the scheme and hence we request a tri-party meeting to resolve the issue.“The total loan from nationalised and other banks on 181 barges as on September 2012 was Rs 363 crore and has now come down to Rs 160 crore,” informed Jadav and added, “The loans with nationalized banks, which were to the tune of Rs 230 crore as on September 2012, have scaled down to Rs 75 crore after payment.”He claimed that while the nationalized banks have granted a 30% waiver, the cooperative banks, EDC, L&T Finance and SERI have failed to do so. “If we want to sell off the barges, we cannot do without clearance from the banks,” he said.“On our own, we have arranged buyers who are ready to buy the barges from us, but the banks are not giving us the clearance,” added Jadav.“We request the government to convene a joint meeting of all the stakeholders to know the exact status of OTS and extend it for another six months,” requested Jadav.Jadav said if this is not done, then barges will not be available for exports.
PONDA
the goan I network
Mining dependents too have demanded extension of the OTS scheme, even as they claim that many banks have failed to process their applications. They have also given an option to the State government to either take over their loans or re-structure them with a 35 per cent subsidy.Members of North Goa Tipper Truck Owners Association (NGTTOA), South Goa Progressive Truck Owners Association (SGPTOA) and All Goa Machinery Owners Association (AGMOA) made the demand at a joint news conference on Wednesday.The State government on Tuesday decided to close the scheme on March 31 by not granting any more extension to the OTS scheme.Responding to the government s decision, AGMOA President Sandeep Parab said there are many claimants who could not apply to avail the schemes as they were not in a position to repay. “But now when mining activities are resuming, we can arrange the money and repay. Hence, we request the government to extend the scheme. This will give us some solace,” Parab said.“The government can either take over our loans from the banks or from any other agency or inform banks to re-structure these, but the government should consider 35 per cent subsidy,” he said.SGPTOA Secretary Satyavan Gaonkar and Suresh Desai of NGTTOA have also demanded that the government should help them by restructuring the loans.All the three associations also thanked the government for implementing several schemes for mining dependents.
Members of North Goa Tipper Truck Owners Association (NGTTOA), South Goa Progressive Truck Owners Association (SGPTOA) and All Goa Machinery Owners Association (AGMOA) made the demand at a joint news conference on Wednesday
