The Khadi and Village Industries Commission, the nodal agency in charge of implementing the ambitious Prime Minister?s Employment Generation Programme (PMEGP), which was launched on August 15 this year, is going all out to meet the stiff target for generating employment in the country.
The scheme, an initiative of the ministry of ministry of micro small and medium enterprise (MSME) for tackling poverty and unemployment, has been drafted with the purpose of helping first-generation entrepreneurs in both the rural as well as urban areas to establish micro enterprises. A credit-linked central sector scheme, PMEGP aims at creating 37 lakh additional employment opportunities in the micro sector by the end of the 11th Plan period in 2012 and will provide Rs 4,485 crore of government subsidy for it.
Of this, 52,000 projects, giving 6 lakh employments, will be set up by the end of this fiscal and Rs 800 crore margin money would be given out for it.
Speaking to FE, CEO of KVIC, JS Mishra said the salient feature of the new scheme is that while the earlier Rural Employment Generation Programme and Prime Minister Rojgar Yojna were meant for rural folk only, this scheme aims at empowering first-generation entrepreneurs of both the rural and urban areas by providing them extensive technical training, which will be backed up by sound marketing techniques.
?The scheme will be implemented by KVIC and state Khadi and Village Industries Boards (KVIBs) in rural areas and by District Industries Centres (DICs) in urban areas,? he said adding that a higher rate of subsidy would be given to those projects that are to be set up in rural areas. ?While the rate of subsidy in urban areas will be 15%, in rural areas it will go up to 25%. In fact, all public sector banks and rural regional banks have been roped in for an expeditious and regular credit flow into the scheme,? Mishra said
In a letter to the principal secretaries of industry in all the states, Mishra has asked them to start preliminary work on making the scheme successful. ?Entrepreneurs should be informed to avail the benefits of the scheme,? Mishra has written.
Submitting the blueprint of the scheme to the bankers in Lucknow during a day-long workshop, Mishra said Uttar Pradesh has been given a subsidy of 118 crore and 10,000 projects have been set as the target to be achieved by the state khadi board.
?Of the 6 lakh employments to be generated nationwide during this fiscal end, 1 lakh has to be achieved in Uttar Pradesh itself. Today?s workshop is aimed at boosting the morale of the state administration for achieving this target within the next four months,? Mishra added.