THE Indian community has received close to RM1 billion in federal assistance since 2022, excluding allocations under the Malaysian Indian Transformation Unit (MITRA), Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim told Parliament today.
“Since we introduced the Sumbangan Tunai Rahmah (STR) cash aid, the total allocation channelled to the Indian community has increased consistently,” he said during a response to a question by Sungai Siput MP S Kesavan in the Dewan Rakyat.
“In 2022, we began with an allocation of RM500 million. Over the three years since, it has reached almost RM1 billion – RM972 million to be exact,” Anwar noted. “So it is incorrect to claim that aid to the Indian community is limited to MITRA. That RM1 billion figure is separate from MITRA’s allocation.”
The Prime Minister dismissed accusations that the unity government has sidelined the Indian community, describing such claims as unfounded and misleading. He highlighted various additional initiatives delivered to support Indian Malaysians, particularly in the B40 income group.
This includes RM1.2 billion in housing credit guarantee schemes, early education programmes, higher education subsidies, and dialysis aid.
“For the Indian community alone, RM1.2 billion was channelled through the housing credit guarantee scheme. Separately, MITRA receives an annual development budget allocation of RM100 million for socio-economic programmes,” he added. - August 19, 2025
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