New Delhi, Nov 11: The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved the continuation of the Stand-Up India Scheme for five years till March 31, 2031, targeting financial assistance to an additional 2.5 lakh entrepreneurs from women, Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs).
The Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, also approved a Credit Guarantee Corpus of Rs 4,111 crore to support lending under the scheme, which aims to promote entrepreneurship and improve access to institutional finance among underserved communities.
Launched in April 2016, the scheme has so far facilitated loans to more than 2.75 lakh women and SC/ST entrepreneurs. With its extension, the government aims to widen the scheme’s reach and provide financial assistance to another 2.5 lakh beneficiaries over the next five years.
Under the scheme, eligible women, SC and ST entrepreneurs can avail loans ranging from above Rs 10 lakh to Rs 1 crore for setting up new or greenfield enterprises. The loan can be provided either as composite credit, covering working capital and term loan requirements, or as a term loan.
Financial assistance can cover up to 85 per cent of the project cost, subject to the prescribed eligibility conditions.
The scheme covers manufacturing, services, trading and agriculture-allied activities, enabling beneficiaries to establish enterprises across a range of sectors.
To facilitate lending and protect financial institutions against default risks, the scheme provides credit guarantee coverage of 85 per cent of the loan amount. A standard guarantee fee of 0.50 per cent is applicable.
The government said the continuation of the scheme would improve access to credit for women and entrepreneurs belonging to SC and ST communities, facilitate the creation of new enterprises and strengthen entrepreneurship across underserved sections of society.
The initiative is aimed at promoting inclusive economic growth by enabling aspiring entrepreneurs to establish businesses and access institutional financial support.
The extension comes as part of the government’s broader effort to expand credit availability to micro and small entrepreneurs and encourage enterprise creation across the country.
