Rang De offers a new model in lending

With the vision of eliminating poverty in India, with microcredit service and bringing a positive change in their lifestyle, Rang De is making a difference

Arundhuti Banerjee

One can realise the importance of the statement ‘freedom comes with equal opportunity’ after watching the documentary film ‘Babulal Bhuiya ki Qurbanithat’, directed by Manjira Dutta in 1988 based on the murder case of a coal mine worker Babulal Bhuiya That has recently screened at Lamakaan by Rang De, a microcredit organisation based in Bangalore.

“Keeping the politics and administration apart, the story of these workers is nothing but denial of opportunity. They have nothing to do but to cope with the situation to earn their bread,” said Rohit Sathish, an active member of Rang De, Hyderabad chapter. So, keeping the intensity of the problem in rural community in mind and to encourage the small business investment, Smita Ramakrishna and Ramakrishna NK started the organisation in 2008. They have got inspired by the concept of Grameen Bank in Bangladesh by the novel prize winner, Prof. Muhammad Yunus in 2006.
Presently they have reached out to the rural areas of thirteen states, including Bihar, Gujarat, Manipur, Rajastan, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Odissa and West Bengal with their micro credit service.

Though the government has rural banks to provide business loans to support low income households, their interest rates are high. “Since we are maintaining everything online and many people are offering volunteer service, we are not asking for high interest rate from borrowers,” said Rohit.

The work structure and the peer-to-peer lending model makes Rang De different from the rest. “Being an urban person have you ever thought of lending your Rs100 (with the possibility of repayment) to someone who can bring a change in his/her life completely? We are giving that opportunity to people with such kind of investment,” said Rohit.

Since it is not a donation but a loan, investors are getting back their money within a certain timeline. “ While we are not promising to our lenders about repayment we are maintaining the transparency, for sure. In the process, the investor has the opportunity to meet the lendee and take an on the field trip with our field partners who are constantly monitoring the lendee. The purpose of keeping such track record is for utilization of the money for a genuine cause,” said Smita, the co-founder of Rang De.

According to their online record, in the last five years 95% investors have got back their money back on time and the rest of the repayment was delayed due to some genuine reasons like death or natural calamity. “The reason we are continuing our journey successfully and growing gradually is because of our transparency,” added Rohit. Some popular faces like veteran actress Waheeda Rahaman, film director Nagesh Kukunoor, song writer Raghu Dixit have come forward to support their initiative.

For more details visit: www.rangde.org