Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched Rs 13,000-crore PM Vishwakarma Yojana for traditional artisans and craftsmen on September 17.
PM Vishwakarma Yojana
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi first announced the ‘Vishwakarma Yojana’ on August 15.
• The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs approved the Central Sector Scheme with a financial outlay of Rs 13,000 crore for a period of five years (FY 2023-24 to FY 2027-28).
• PM Vishwakarma Yojana will be fully funded by the Union government with an outlay of Rs 13,000 crore.
• The scheme will be jointly implemented by the ministry of micro, small and medium enterprises, the ministry of skill development and entrepreneurship and the Department of Financial Services (DFS).
• The goal of the scheme is to enhance the accessibility and quality of products and services offered by traditional artisans and craftsmen (vishwakarmas).
• The vishwakarmas will be registered free of charge through Common Services Centres using a biometric-based PM Vishwakarma Portal.
• The artisans and craftspeople will be provided recognition through a PM Vishwakarma Certificate and an ID Card.
• The scheme offers collateral-free enterprise development loans of Rs 1 lakh (first tranche for 18 months repayment) and Rs 2 lakh (second tranche for 30 months repayment).
• A concessional rate of interest of 5 per cent will be charged from the beneficiary with interest subvention cap of 8 per cent to be paid by the ministry of micro small and medium enterprises.
• The credit guarantee fees will be borne by the central government.
• The scheme will further provide craftsmen with methods of skill upgradation involving basic and advanced training, a toolkit incentive of Rs 15,000 and incentives for digital transactions and marketing support.
• The scheme is expected to reach and bring prosperity to 30 lakh families.
• Artisans or craftsmen working with hands and tools and engaged in one of the 18 family-based traditional trades are eligible to avail the benefits of the scheme.
• The scheme will be rolled out in rural and urban areas with focus on saturating districts in a phased manner.
Significance of the scheme
• A significant section of the workforce of the Indian economy consists of artisans and craftspeople, who work with their hands and tools, are usually self-employed and are generally considered to be a part of the informal or unorganised sector of the economy.
• These traditional artisans and craftspeople are referred to as ‘vishwakarmas’ and are engaged in occupations like blacksmiths, goldsmiths, potters, carpenters, sculptors, etc.
• These skills or occupations are passed from generation-to-generation following a guru-shishya model of traditional training, both within the families and other informal groups of artisans and craftspeople.
• PM Vishwakarma Yojana, aims at improving the quality, as well as the reach of products and services of artisans and craftspeople and to ensure that the vishwakarmas are integrated with the domestic and global value chains.
• It will bring a qualitative shift in the way the occupations are practiced by artisans and craftspeople and this will uplift their socio-economic status as well as their quality of life.
• Through the implementation of the scheme, it is expected that beneficiaries who are currently working as entrepreneurs in the unorganised sector will be able to scale-up their operations, modernise/upgrade their tools and business, and enter the formal economy as entrepreneur and contribute towards the larger goal of nation building.
