Startup India Initiative to get a Rural Avatar

The soon to be launched Deen Dayal Upadhyay Swaniyojana Yojana would be the rural avatar of the government’s Startup India campaign that is aimed at encouraging entrepreneurship.

The rural development ministry is designing the programme that will be backed by the MUDRA Bank loans, innovative credit linkages and self-help groups. The discussions would be held between the government and private entities and individuals who are working in the startup space to map entrepreneurship opportunities.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the startup campaign in January this year and on the similar lines the Swaniyojana Yojana is finalizing its action plans and the ways it would benefit the rural poor looking for self-employment options.

According to a senior government official,” The scheme will provide the basic skill sets required for selfemployment in various fields and thereafter we would provide credit linkages, incubation centres wherever needed.”

The funding for micro and small enterprises is overseen by Micro Units Development and Refinance Agency (MUDRA) Bank. In July 2015 the Socio Economic and Caste Census (SECC) data released showed that nearly a third of India’s rural households are landless and are dependent upon the manual labour for income. This highlights the need for skill development in these areas.

Driving, plumbing, agriculture, dairy farming, grafting and horticulture are some of the areas in which skill sets would be provided. The same official stated,” The rural unemployed need not leave their land in search of wage employment if they have entrepreneurial opportunities.”

The talks are on between the rural development ministry and other government departments such as textiles, animal husbandry and food processing to help the rural poor collaborate in setting up businesses across various sectors.

The programme that would be launched would be on the lines similar to Deen Dayal Upadhyay Grameen Kaushal Yojana (DDUGKY). The only difference would be that rather than offering a guaranteed placement it would offer opportunities for self-employment.

The programme would provide training in beauty courses, masonry, horticulture and agriculture.