PM SVANIDHI - GOVERNANCE
News: Only
9.3% of loans under scheme for street vendors given to those from minority
communities: Govt. data
What's in the news?
● The
Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs
told the Rajya Sabha that a total of 42.7 lakh loans amounting to ₹5,152.37
crore had been disbursed to street vendors under the PM SVANidhi scheme out of
which only 3.98 lakh or 9.3% were to hawkers from the minority communities.
PM SVANidhi:
● The
PM SVANidhi is a micro-credit scheme
which was launched by the government in 2020 to provide handholding support to
street vendors to tide over pandemic-induced economic stress.
● PM
SVANidhi stands for Prime Minister Street Vendor’s AtmaNirbhar Nidhi.
Nodal Ministry: Ministry of Housing and
Urban Affairs
Beneficiaries:
● Street
Vendors or hawkers in urban areas
● Street
Vendors of peri-urban areas and rural areas (Those who were street vendors as
on/before 24th March 2020).
Features:
● It
facilitates collateral-free loans of
₹10,000, with subsequent loans of ₹20,000 and ₹50,000 with 7% interest subsidy.
● There
is a provision of monthly cash-back
incentive on digital payments through monthly cashback in the range of Rs.
50-100.
● It
also incentivizes regular repayment
of loans.