The government launched the PM AtmaNirbhar Nidhi (PM SAVNidhi) to offer a micro-credit facility to street vendors who were among the most brutally hit during the COVID-19 pandemic to help them resume their livelihood. The scheme provides small loans to cart-pullers, street vendors etc., to help them resume their livelihood after the crippling effect of the pandemic lockdown. Street vendors who are 60 and older can also apply to the scheme.

Lending Institutions

The lending institutions include scheduled commercial banks, regional rural banks, small finance banks, cooperative banks, non-banking financial companies, and micro-finance institutions. The scheme provides an initial working capital loan of Rs 10,000 for a year.

KYC documents required for the loan: Documents for Know-Your-Customer (KYC) verification include Aadhaar card, voter card, driving license, MNREGA card and PAN card.

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How To Obtain A Letter Of Recommendation To Be A Recognised Vendor?

The scheme is open to vendors operating in the rural and urban areas. You must provide one of the following records to get a letter of recommendation if you operate in any of these areas: documentation proving you received one-time assistance from specific states or union territories (UTs) during the lockdown; records of previous loans obtained from banks, non-banking financial companies (NBFCs), or micro-finance institutions (MFIs) for vending; membership information from vendors associations; and any additional documentation proving your status as a vendor.

Benefits: The interest subsidy is 7 per cent credited directly to the person’s bank account quarterly. The admissible subsidy amount will be credited in one go if the payments are made early. For a loan of Rs 10,000, if you pay all 12 EMIs in time, you will get Rs 400 as an interest subsidy.

Digital Transaction: The on-boarded vendors would be provided with a monthly cashback, of Rs 50 to Rs 100, as per the scheme criteria to promote digital transactions.

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Conclusion

Thousands of small street vendors lost their livelihoods after the government enforced a lockdown across India to curb the spread of the disease in 2020. Consequently, many of them had to depend on government assistance programmes for their livelihoods. After the pandemic, the government launched this scheme to help rehabilitate these people financially by providing small loans so they could resume their small businesses and support their families.