The Pradhan Mantri Street Vendor’s AtmaNirbhar Nidhi (PM SVANidhi) Scheme, which is a Special Micro-Credit Facility Scheme for street vendors facilitates working capital loans up to Rs.10,000 for street vendors. The government received 27,33,497 loan applications out of which there is a sanction of loans to 14,34,436 applications and loans are disbursed to 7,88,438 applicants.
The vendors who have gone to native due to COVID-19 lockdown are eligible for obtaining loans under this scheme on arrival. The loan procedure is hassle-free as the applicants can upload the loan application online. The applicants can upload online applications by themselves at any common service centre or by going to a bank or through a municipal office.
Now, the banks are reaching the doorsteps of the people, which helps them to avail loans for starting their own business. Praising the hard work done by the bank staff, Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi stated that “There was a time when street vendors did not go inside the bank, but today the bank is going to their home”. Shri Durga Shanker Mishra, Secretary (MoHUA) earlier tweeted that his Ministry is working with all the concerned stakeholders to realise the objective of Aatmanirbhar Bharat and making the process smooth and effortless.
A digital platform with a web portal/mobile app is developed to administer this scheme with an end-to-end solution. It ensures fast implementation of this scheme with accountability, consistency and transparency. This digital platform integrates the web portal/mobile app with PAiSA portal of MoHUA for administering interest subsidy automatically. It also integrates with UdyamiMitra portal of SIDBI for credit management.
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The street vendors receive incentives under this scheme for digital transactions, i.e. if payments are made or received using digital means like UPI, RuPay debit cards, QR-codes of payment aggregators, etc. street vendors receive a monthly cashback.
Urban Local Bodies play a pivotal role in implementing this scheme. They are leveraging the network of all stakeholders, i.e. Self-Help Groups and their federations, Micro-Finance Institutions, Street Vendor’s Associations, Agents of Banks, Business Correspondents, etc., to administer this scheme. They are also connecting with the Digital Payments Aggregators such as PayTM, BHIM, BharatPay, PhonePe, GooglePay, AmazonPay, etc. for carrying out this scheme successfully.
Shri Hardeep Singh Puri, Minister of State (I/C) of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs had tweeted in favour of the PM SVANidhi scheme during the review of its implementation status and progress. His tweet stated that this scheme is a positive step taken towards making of an Aatmanirbhar Bharat, where every Indian is a stakeholder in the nation’s progress and way forward.
The resilience of the local traders is visible during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown, and they can bounce back to business and strengthen their livelihoods with the help of the government. The street vendors who were given loans through the SVANidhi scheme are repaying it on time, proving that there is no compromise on the honesty and sincerity of the small-time borrowers.
For any clarifications/feedback on the topic, please contact the writer at mayashree.acharya@cleartax.in
I am an Advocate by profession. I interpret laws and put them in simple words. I love to explore and try new things in life.
