Rs 5.35cr sought to develop infra in minority-populated areas

Coimbatore: The backward classes and minorities welfare department under the district administration has sought funds to the tune of Rs 5.35 crore to develop infrastructure in areas where people from the minority community reside, officials said.
Officials of the department said the funds were meant for constructing anganwadis and classrooms and toilets in schools in areas where minority communities live, such as Kurichi and Kuniyamuthur.“We had sent the proposal to the state, which had approved it and sent it to the Centre. We are now awaiting Centre’s nod.”
On Thursday, vice-chairperson of the National Commission for Minorities George Kurian visited the Coimbatore district collectorate and held discussions with district administration authorities and representatives of minority religious communities such as Muslims, Christians, Sikhs and Jains.
Kurian gathered information from the district administration officials on how the Prime Minister’s ’15-point programme’ for the development of minorities was being implemented in the district and how many people have been benefitted from it. The programme includes components such as making integrated child development scheme, school education and scholarships available to children from minority communities and preventing incidents of communal violence.
He inquired about the implementation of the Pradhan Mantri Jan Vikas Karyakram scheme, which seeks to provide better socio-economic and infrastructure facilities for the minority community people.
Kurian also asked the representatives of minority communities to take the schemes to the members of their communities. He asked officials to identify core areas to be developed for such people