New Delhi: Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman speaks in Rajya Sabha during the Budget session of Parliament, in New Delhi, Friday, Feb. 2, 2024.
| Photo Credit: PTI

With an allocation of ₹22,137.95 crores in the interim budget 2024, the Micro, Small and Medium-Scale Enterprises (MSMEs) sector will see establishment of more clusters and new technology centres.

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said in her budget speech, “It is an important policy priority for our Government to ensure timely and adequate finances, relevant technologies and appropriate training for the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) to grow and also compete globally.”

While the allocation for the Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme, which was launched in 2020 during the COVID pandemic, has reduced to ₹ 10,162.92 crores from ₹14,000 crores last financial year, establishment of new technology centres has allocation of ₹450 crores, Micro and Small Cluster Development Programme has ₹400 crores and the PM Vishwakarma scheme has got ₹4,824 crores. Allocation for the coir sector is also up marginally to ₹103.10 crores.

According to the Federation of Indian Micro and Small & Medium Enterprises (FISME), the Budget “lays a strategic direction to address a few critical needs” of the MSME sector. The current financial architecture needs a revamp to serve green field manufacturing projects and fast growing MSMEs. In technology, the focus on resource efficient technologies and green technologies is another direction the government is alluding to.

New Delhi:

Within ten days of its launch, the PM Vishwakarma scheme has received more than 1.40 lakh applications, Union Minister Narayan Rane said on Wednesday.

The Minister for Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises, through his post on X (formerly Twitter), wrote that PM Vishwakarma Yojana is a result of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision and receiving of such high numbers of applications within ten days of the launch is a testament to its success.

He further stated that the PM Vishwakarma Scheme will be a milestone for the comprehensive development of our socially and economically underprivileged Vishwakarma brothers and sisters and it will restore their lost identity which has been long awaited.

The Union Minister said that this scheme aims to enhance traditional artisans and craftspersons production capacity and take their products to domestic and global markets. Under the scheme, 18 types of artisans and craftsmen will be benefited.

Skill training will be provided to the beneficiaries and they will receive a daily stipend of 500 rupees during the training. In addition, assistance of Rs 15,000 will be provided to purchase tool kits.

Beneficiaries will also be eligible for collateral free loan up to 3 lakh.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s flagship Vishwakarma scheme has been launched to support those engaged in traditional crafts.

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