Highlighting years of mismanagement, LG VK Saxena has cleared funding to address pending salaries at the DSFDC and demanded a comprehensive revival plan. Once a vital support system for SC/ST/OBC/Minority entrepreneurs, the corporation now faces financial distress, with Saxena attributing its decline to neglect and urging immediate corrective measures.
By PC Bureau
Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena on January 6, 2025, approved the release of grant-in-aid to the Delhi Schedule Castes Finance & Development Corporation (DSFDC) for payment of salaries pending since January 2024. He also directed the Delhi Government to devise a concrete revival plan for the now-defunct corporation.
In a sharp critique of the state of the DSFDC, Saxena held the AAP Government accountable for the decline of the once-robust organization, which was established to provide financial assistance to entrepreneurs from marginalized SC/ST/OBC/Minority communities and individuals with disabilities.
Key Observations by the LG:
- The DSFDC currently lacks a financial corpus and has been relying on income from fixed deposits and rental properties.
- Employees faced undue hardship, making repeated appeals to authorities and approaching the Delhi High Court to secure their salaries.
- The corporation, financially robust until 2011-12, now operates with an annual income of only ₹5.61 crores against an expenditure of approximately ₹17 crores.
Saxena emphasized the importance of the DSFDC in uplifting marginalized communities and stressed that delays in employee salaries undermine the corporation’s mission. While approving the Council of Ministers’ recommendation for grant-in-aid, he insisted that a comprehensive revival plan be prepared within a fixed timeframe to restore the organization’s financial health and operational efficacy.
