The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved the restructuring and extension of the Prime Minister Street Vendor’s AtmaNirbhar Nidhi (PM SVANidhi) scheme till March 31, 2030, with a total outlay of Rs 7,332 crore.
The restructured scheme will cover 1.15 crore beneficiaries, including 50 lakh new entrants, and introduce enhanced loan amounts, UPI-linked RuPay credit cards, and digital cashback incentives to boost adoption of digital payments.
Under the revised credit structure, the first tranche loan has been increased to Rs 5,000 (from Rs 10,000) and the second tranche to Rs 25,000 (from Rs 20,000), while the third tranche remains at Rs 50,000.
"Street vendors repaying their second loan will be eligible for UPI-linked RuPay credit cards to access instant credit for business and personal needs," a official statement said. "Cashback incentives of up to Rs 1,600 will also be offered on digital retail and wholesale transactions," the statement further added.
The scheme, jointly implemented by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) and the Department of Financial Services (DFS), will now also expand to census towns and peri-urban areas in a phased manner.
Alongside credit, the scheme will focus on entrepreneurship training, digital literacy, marketing support, and food safety standards for street food vendors in collaboration with FSSAI. Its welfare component, SVANidhi se Samriddhi, will be strengthened through monthly Lok Kalyan Melas to ensure saturation coverage of government schemes for vendors and their families.
Launched in June 2020 to support vendors hit by the COVID-19 pandemic, PM SVANidhi has so far disbursed over 96 lakh loans worth Rs 13,797 crore to more than 68 lakh street vendors. Nearly 47 lakh digitally active beneficiaries have carried out over 557 crore transactions valued at Rs 6.09 lakh crore, earning cashback of Rs 241 crore.
The scheme, which has won the Prime Minister’s Award for Excellence in Public Administration (2023), is now envisioned as a tool for holistic socio-economic upliftment of street vendors, promoting financial inclusion, digital adoption, and sustainable urban livelihoods.
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