Loans worth Rs 40,600 cr sanctioned to over 1.8 lakh entrepreneurs under Stand Up India Scheme in 7 years

New Delhi, Apr 5 (KNN) Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday said that over 1.8 lakh women and SC/ST entrepreneurs have been sanctioned loans for more than Rs 40,600 crore under Stand Up India Scheme (SUPI) in the last 7 years.

The Stand Up India Scheme was launched in 2016 to promote entrepreneurship amongst women, scheduled castes (SC) & scheduled tribes (ST) categories, to help them in starting a greenfield enterprise in manufacturing, services or trading sector and activities allied to agriculture.

At the seventh anniversary of SUPI Scheme, Sitharaman pointed out that the scheme has helped enable an eco-system which facilitates and continues to provide a supportive environment for setting up green field enterprises through access to loans from bank branches of all Scheduled Commercial Banks.

Speaking on the occasion, Union Minister of State for Finance Bhagwat Kisanrao Karad pointed out that Stand Up India scheme is based on the third pillar of National Mission for Financial Inclusion namely “Funding the unfunded”.

“SUPI has ensured availability of seamless credit flow from branches of Schedule Commercial Banks to SC/ST and women entrepreneurs. It has been instrumental in improving the standards of living for entrepreneurs, their employees and their families,” he said.

The Stand Up India Scheme has been extended till 2025.  (KNN Bureau)