RAWALPINDI, Aug 20: Punjab government would soon launch a Golden Loans scheme for the rural women to make them self-earning members of the society.

Punjab Minister for Cooperatives Mohammad Anwar said this while talking to District Nazim Raja Tariq Kiyani here on Wednesday.

Giving details of the small loans scheme, Mr Anwar said women could benefit from the scheme by mortgaging their gold ornaments with the Cooperatives Bank. He said the rate of interest on these loans would be considerably low. Besides, the minister said, under another scheme, the employees of Punjab government would be provided soft loans by the Cooperatives Bank for the purchase of computer equipment.

The minister said the provincial government had planned to crack down on the phony cooperative societies and a survey had been started in this regard. “Societies working without fulfilling the required conditions or those existing on paper would be closed down so that they do not cheat the people,” he said.

Mr Anwar said the Cooperatives Hostel for Women in Lahore was being renovated to facilitate the working women.

District Nazim Tariq Kiyani told the minister that the district government had purchased 400 computers to increase computer literacy in the district schools.