PM Street Vendor’s Atma Nirbhar Nidhi (PM SVANidhi)

Quick Facts

• Purpose: To provide collateral-free working capital loans to street vendors so that they can restart and sustain their businesses.
• Type: Central Sector Scheme (funded 100% by the Union Government).
• Beneficiaries: Street vendors and hawkers operating in urban areas and even in nearby peri-urban and rural areas.
• Implementing Agency: Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI).

Objectives

• To provide working capital loans up to ₹10,000 for 1 year.
• On successful repayment:
  • Second loan up to ₹20,000
  • Third loan up to ₹50,000
• To incentivize regular repayment and encourage digital transactions.

Salient Features

• Background: Launched in 2020 as a COVID-19 relief measure for urban street vendors who lost their livelihoods during the lockdown.
• Responsibility of States/ULBs: Identification of beneficiaries is done by Urban Local Bodies (ULBs).

Criteria for Identification of Street Vendors

A vendor is eligible if:

1. They have a Certificate of Vending/ Identity Card issued by the ULB.
2. They were identified in ULB surveys but did not get an ID card.
3. They were left out of surveys, or started vending after the survey, but possess a Letter of Recommendation (LoR) from ULB/ Town Vending Committee (TVC).
4. They are from surrounding rural/ peri-urban areas but vending within ULB limits, with LoR from ULB/TVC.

Eligibility for States/UTs

• States/UTs must have notified Rules under the Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Act, 2014.

Credit Guarantee Mechanism

• Loans under SVANidhi are covered by a graded guarantee cover.
• Managed by Credit Guarantee Fund Trust for Micro and Small Enterprises (CGTMSE).

Special Incentives

• Loan Tenure: 1 year on working capital loans.
• Interest Subsidy: 7% per annum, paid quarterly, on timely repayment.
• Cashback Incentives: Up to ₹100 per month for digital transactions.
• Higher Loan Eligibility: Vendors who repay timely can avail larger loans in subsequent tranches.
• Coverage: Entire country, across all Urban Local Bodies (ULBs).

🌟 Why Important for UPSC?

• Links urban poverty alleviation with financial inclusion.
• Connects with Atma Nirbhar Bharat Abhiyan (self-reliant India).
• Tests governance capacity of ULBs and convergence with Street Vendors Act, 2014.
• Reflects government’s focus on credit-linked livelihood security rather than direct cash transfers.

✅ In short, PM SVANidhi is not just a loan scheme but also a tool for dignity, self-reliance, and digital inclusion for India’s most vulnerable urban workers.