In three years since 2015, when the NDA's ambitious Mudra Yojana to support smallest of entrepreneurs was launched, banks and financial institutions have lent Rs 5.75 lakh crore to 12 crore beneficiaries, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Tuesday.
The scheme has become a “job multiplier and opened up new opportunities for youth”, he added.
However, while interacting with the beneficiaries, the prime minister expressed concern that had the scheme been introduced a few years ago, it would have benefited lakhs of people to set up their businesses and also stopped migration.
“The government has so far given out 12 crore loans worth Rs 5.75 lakh crore. Out of which 28% of the loans worth Rs 3.25 lakh crore were given to first-time entrepreneurs. Of the total loans disbursed, 74% of the total beneficiaries were women and 55% of the loans were given to SC/ST and OBC communities,” the prime minister said in his interaction with the beneficiaries through video conferencing.
“The Mudra Yojana has become a job multiplier. The initiative has helped in relieving the entrepreneurs from the vicious cycle of moneylenders and middlemen. It has opened up new opportunities for youth, women and those who wanted to start or expand their businesses,” Modi said.
He said the scheme has transformed the lives of the poor. By aiding small and micro businesses, the scheme has helped to strengthen people economically, socially and has given them a platform to succeed.
The Prime Minister said that being self- employed is a matter of pride now and has helped people in achieving things that were considered impossible before.
Pradhan Mantri MUDRA Yojana (PMMY) was launched on April 8, 2015, for providing loans up to Rs 10 lakh to the non-corporate, non-farm small/micro enterprises. These loans are classified as MUDRA loans under PMMY. These loans are given by commercial banks, RRBs, small finance banks, cooperative banks, MFIs and NBFCs.
Under the scheme, shopkeepers, fruits or vegetable vendors, truck operators, food-service units, repair shops, machine operators, small industries, artisans, food processors and others in rural and urban areas are eligible for a loan.