PM SVANidhi scheme gets ₹7,332cr budget extension: What is it
The government just gave the green light to keep the PM SVANidhi scheme running until March 2030, with a fresh budget of ₹7,332 crore.
This means around 1.15 crore street vendors—including five million new faces—can now get loans: ₹5,000 first up (a reduction from ₹10,000), then ₹25,000 next time, and still ₹50,000 for the third round.
UPI-linked RuPay credit cards coming up
Street vendors will soon get UPI-linked RuPay credit cards for quick access to cash and digital cashback up to ₹1,600.
The scheme is also rolling out more support for digital skills and entrepreneurship training (with a little help from FSSAI).
Since kicking off in June 2020 during the pandemic, PM SVANidhi has helped over 68 lakh people with loans and encouraged nearly 47 lakh vendors to go digital—leading to over ₹6 lakh crore in transactions and some handy cashback along the way.
It's all about boosting financial inclusion and making life easier for small businesses on the street.