Chandigarh, May 20 (IANS): Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Wednesday announced the government will pay interest of education loans taken by students for three months.

This decision will bring relief to 36,000 students amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Khattar said there are many such students who have taken loan for their education. The government would pay the interest of three months of all those students who are completing their education this year or who have already done so in the previous year, but have not been able to start their jobs or business due to this epidemic.

Similarly, the government will bear two per cent of the total interest on loans of up to Rs 50,000 under Shishu Yojna of Mudra Loan Scheme of the Central government.

They will not be required to give any type of collateral for this loan. Under this scheme, loan will be provided to 5 lakh people of the state.

The Chief Minister also said that the state would provide loans of up to Rs 15,000 to 3 lakh poor people for starting their own small business at only two per cent interest.

These loans will be provided under the Differential Rate of Interest (DRI) scheme, in which banks charge four per cent interest.

Of this, two per cent interest will be borne by the state government.