PUNE: To empower and educate the Muslim community, Rs 200 crore will be allocated to the Muslim community by the State government, announced Dilip Kamble, Minister of State for Social Justice and Special Assistance, during a Roza Iftar party on Tuesday.  

He said that the money which was supposed to be used for Haj pilgrimage will be diverted for education, employment and business of community members. A total of Rs 7,000 crore has been unspent out of which Rs 200 crore will be given to Maharashtra, while rest will be distributed in the country.

“In accordance with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of ‘Sabka Saath Sab Ka Vikas’, we should try and push the minority community towards overall development. The government has been planning to provide scholarships to many students from the minority community under the guidance of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, as education is the basic right of every citizen,” said Kamble.

The iftar party was organised by Mahesh Landge, MLA from Bhosari in Pimpri-Chinchwad, Mayor Nitin Kalje and Deputy Commissioner of Police (zone 3) Ganesh Shinde. All officials of Pimpri Chinchwad Muslim Federation participated in the event.According to Sachar Committee report on Muslims, the drop out rates among Muslims are higher at the level of primary, middle and higher secondary. In premier colleges, only one out of 25 under-graduate students and one out of 50 post-graduate students is a Muslim.