Rs 40,700 cr sanctioned under Stand-Up India Scheme

New Delhi: As much as Rs 40,710 crore loan has been sanctioned to over 1.8 lakh accounts under the government's flagship Stand Up India Scheme, which is focussed on economic empowerment and job creation, according to official data.

Of the funds sanctioned since the scheme's inception in 2016, about 80 per cent of the loans have been given to women entrepreneurs.

The scheme was launched on April 5, 2016, to promote entrepreneurship amongst women, Scheduled Castes (SC) and Scheduled Tribes (ST) categories by providing them loans for starting a greenfield enterprise in manufacturing, services or the trading sector and activities allied to agriculture.

In the first year, Rs 3,683 crore was sanctioned which has now swelled to Rs 40,710 crore as on March 31, 2023, the data showed.

As much as Rs 33,152.43 crore was sanctioned to 1.44 lakh accounts of women while 26,889 loans worth Rs 5,625.5 crore were to SCs and 8,960 loans worth Rs 1,932 crore to STs under the scheme.

The scheme has since been extended till 2025.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday acknowledged the role of the Stand Up India initiative saying it has "boosted the spirit of enterprise." Loans under the scheme are available to SC/ST, women entrepreneurs of 18 years and above. Loans under the scheme are available for only green field projects. Green-field signifies the first-time venture of the beneficiary in manufacturing, services or the trading sector and activities allied to agriculture.

In the case of non-individual enterprises, 51 per cent of the shareholding and controlling stake should be held by either SC/ST or women entrepreneurs. Also, borrowers should not be in default to any bank or financial institution.

The scheme has undergone some changes since its launch. The extent of margin money to be brought by the borrower has been reduced from 'up to 25 per cent' to 'up to 15 per cent' of the project cost. However, the borrower will continue to contribute at least 10 per cent of the project cost as their own contribution.

Also, pisciculture, beekeeping, poultry, livestock, rearing, grading, sorting, aggregation agro industries, dairy, fishery, agriclinic and agribusiness centres, food & agro-processing, and services supporting these have been made eligible for loans under the scheme for enterprises in activities allied to agriculture.

The scheme, which covers all branches of scheduled commercial banks, can be accessed either directly at the branch or through Stand-Up India Portal or through the lead district manager (LDM).

Apart from linking prospective borrowers to banks for loans, the online portal standupmitra.in developed by the Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) for Stand Up India Scheme is also providing guidance to prospective entrepreneurs in their endeavour to set up business enterprises.

Through a network of more than 8,000 Hand Holding Agencies, this portal facilitates step-by-step guidance for connecting prospective borrowers to various agencies with specific expertise viz. Skilling Centres, Mentorship support, Entrepreneurship Development Program Centres, and District Industries Centre, together with addresses and contact numbers.