The government’s Prime Minister’s Employment Generation Programme (PMEGP), which helps aspiring entrepreneurs set up new micro units in the non-farm sector, facilitated 89,118 new units in the financial year 2023-24, marginally up from 85,167 new units enabled in FY23, according to available government data.
The scheme, which facilitates bank-finance subsidy from 15 per cent to 35 per cent for loans up to Rs 50 lakh for setting up a manufacturing unit and Rs 20 lakh for a service unit, recorded Rs 3,093 crore subsidy in FY24 vis-a-vis Rs 2,722 crore subsidy in FY23, as per the data shared on July 22 in the Rajya Sabha by Shobha Karandlaje, Minister of State, MSME Ministry.
The new micro-enterprise count peaked at 1.03 lakh with Rs 2,977 crore in subsidy provided to entrepreneurs in FY22, growing from 66,653 new units enabled with a subsidy of Rs 1,950 crore during FY20, before Covid, data showed.
As of July 12 in the current financial year, 7,444 new micro units were set up under the scheme with a subsidy of Rs 299 crore. The new units have provided estimated employment to 59,552 people this year.
Activities not permitted under PMEGP for setting up of micro enterprises
The scheme omits certain activities for setting up new enterprises such as:
- Any industry or business connected with meat (slaughtered), that is, processing, canning and/or serving items made of it as food
- Production/manufacturing or sale of intoxicant items like Beedi/Pan/ Cigar/Cigarette etc
- Any hotel or dhaba or sales outlet serving liquor, preparation/producing tobacco as raw materials, tapping of toddy for sale except serving/selling non-vegetarian food at hotels/dhabas
- Manufacturing of polythene carry bags of less than 75 microns thickness and manufacture of carry bags or containers made of recycled plastic for storing, carrying, dispensing or packaging of food and any other item which causes environmental problems
- Any industry/business connected with the cultivation of crops/plantation like Tea, Coffee, Rubber etc., Horticulture, Floriculture, Animal Husbandry