JOHOR BAHRU: The Malaysian Indian Community Transformation Unit (MITRA) will soon implement five initiatives aimed at improving the living standards of the Indian community, with a total allocation of RM60 million, according to its Special Task Force Committee chairman P Prabakaran.
He explained that the initiatives will focus on three main areas: entrepreneurship and career, human capital development, and the social well-being of the community.
“To increase the number of heavy truck drivers and enhance their income, MITRA, in collaboration with driving institutions recognised by the Road Transport Department (JPJ), will launch the MITRA Goods Driving Licence (GDL) Lorry Licence Assistance programme.
“This programme, with an allocation of RM1.5 million, will offer three types of GDL licence classes – Class E, Class E Full (Rigid), and Class E Full (Jointed) – targeting 654 youths and adults from the B40 group,” he said during a press conference at the Southern Zone MADANI Rakyat 2024 programme here today.
He added that applications for the programme will open in September and that it falls under the scope of entrepreneurship and career development.
In addition, under the human capital initiative, a total of RM35 million has been allocated to implement two programmes, namely the Private Kindergarten Early Education Subsidy (RM10 million) and the Higher Education Institutions (IPT) 4.0 Early Admission Assistance (RM25 million).
The Private Kindergarten Early Education Subsidy initiative aims to ensure that children of the Indian community, aged four to six, have access to early education, while also easing the financial burden on families of the B40 group for the 2024/2025 school session.
It will benefit 4,545 children and a total of 186 kindergarten operators have submitted applications for the assistance which will be distributed in September.
Meanwhile, a total of 12,400 first and second-year Bachelor’s Degree and Diploma students studying at public and private IPTs from the B40 group have the opportunity to receive benefits through the IPT 4.0 Early Admission Assistance.
Applications will open in October and eligible students will receive one-off assistance of RM2,000, while disabled students will receive one-off assistance of RM3,000 which will be credited to the Bank Simpanan Nasional (BSN) account from December.
In terms of social welfare, a total of RM23.5 million has been allocated to implement two programmes, namely the Bantuan Sinar Cahaya MITRA and the MITRA Dialysis Subsidy Assistance.
MITRA Sinar Cahaya Assistance is a new programme developed in collaboration with the National Welfare Foundation (YKN) to alleviate the burden on the Indian community from the B40 and M40 groups affected by health or economic issues.
The types of assistance available include disaster aid, housing or temporary accommodation support, health assistance, funeral management, and maternity assistance, with an allocation of RM15.5 million, which will benefit a total of 14,330 recipients.
The MITRA Dialysis Subsidy programme, which involves an allocation of RM8 million, will benefit 800 kidney patients in the B40 and M40 groups, providing up to RM10,000 in assistance per patient.
Additionally, MITRA is rolling out phase two of its initiative to enhance the socio-economic status of the Indian community.
This includes programmes such as the Malaysia-China Youth TVET Training (MCYTT), which targets around 500 Malaysian Indian youths for a TVET boot camp in China.
Financial literacy and equity development programmes will also be offered through the Financial Management Carnival and Stock Market training, in collaboration with Bursa Malaysia.
