On the 6th anniversary of ”Stand Up India” scheme, the government today claimed that it has fulfilled the aspirations of entrepreneurs, particularly women and Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs).

Recognising the challenges faced by aspiring SC, ST and women entrepreneurs, the ”Stand up India” scheme was launched on 5 April 2016 to promote entrepreneurship at the grassroot level, focusing on economic empowerment and job creation. In 2019-20, the scheme was extended for the entire period coinciding with the 15th Finance Commission period of 2020-25.

In a message on the occasion, Union Finance and Corporate Affairs Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said, “As we commemorate the sixth anniversary of the Stand-Up India scheme, it is heartening to see that more than 1.33 lakh new job-creators and entrepreneurs have so far been facilitated under this Scheme.”

She further said, “More than 1 lakh women promoters have benefitted from this Scheme during its six years of operation. The Government understands the potential these rising entrepreneurs have in driving economic growth through their roles as not just wealth-creators but also job-creators.”

“As more and more beneficiaries from the underserved segments of entrepreneurs are targeted for coverage, we would make significant strides towards building an Atmanirbhar Bharat,” the Finance Minister added.

As India is growing rapidly, hopes, aspirations and expectations of a large group of potential entrepreneurs, particularly women and Scheduled Castes (SCs), Scheduled Tribes (STs), are rising. They want to set up an enterprise of their own to allow themselves to thrive and grow. Such entrepreneurs are spread across the country and are bubbling with ideas on what they can do for themselves and their families. The scheme envisages to facilitate the dreams of aspiring SC, ST and women entrepreneurs to reality by supporting their energy and enthusiasm and removing many hurdles from their path.

The objective of Stand-Up India scheme is to help women, Scheduled Castes (SC) & Scheduled Tribes (ST) in starting a greenfield enterprise in manufacturing, services or the trading sector and activities allied to agriculture.

The purpose of Stand-Up India is to:

–Promote entrepreneurship amongst women, SC & ST category;

–Provide loans for greenfield enterprises in manufacturing, services or the trading sector and activities allied to agriculture; and

–Facilitate bank loans between Rs.10 lakh and Rs.1 crore to at least one Scheduled Caste/ Scheduled Tribe borrower and at least one woman borrower per bank branch of Scheduled Commercial Banks.

 The scheme seeks to give access to loans from bank branches to borrowers to help them set up their own enterprise.

As on 21 March 2022, Rs. 30160 crore has been sanctioned under the scheme to 133,995 accounts.