Finance Minister Abul Maal Abdul Muhith today said the government is planning 'security fund' against bank loan, to be lent from the banking system, for the purpose of education.

The finance minister was speaking as the chief guest at a function arranged on awarding education scholarship by Shahjalal Islami Bank at Officer's club in the capital.

Chaired by the Chairman of the Shahjalal Islami Bank Board of Directors AK Azad, the function was also addressed, among others, by former advisor to the caretaker government Tapan Chowdhury, Bangladesh Red Crescent Society Chairman Hafiz Ahmed Majumder, Shahjalal Islami Bank Foundation Chairman Engineer M Towhidur Rahman, Managing Director of Shahjalal Islami Bank Farman R Chowdhury and member of the Board of Directors M Sanaullah Shahid.

Allocation in the budget for education would increase, said the finance minister.

Former FBCCI president AK Azad also urged the government to form special court in order to dispose of default loans. "If the government reduces the extent of default loans, then interest rate of the bank loan would come down from 10 to 7 per cent", Azad said.

Later, the minister formally distributed scholarship cheques among 500 students studying in different colleges, universities and medical institutions.

Taka 20,000 was provided to each student who passed the SSC examination in 2015 and Taka 25,000 to each student passed HSC examination the same year,under the scholarship programme.

Shahjalal Islami Bank has been running the scholarship programme since 2006.