Finance Minister Unveils Doubling of Mudra Loan Limit to Boost Entrepreneurship

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced the doubling of the Mudra loan limit to Rs 20 lakh to enhance entrepreneurship. The scheme, part of the Pradhan Mantri MUDRA Yojana (PMMY), aims to provide collateral-free micro-credit to non-corporate, non-farm small and micro-entrepreneurs. Various initiatives for economic support, social justice, and MSME development were also highlighted.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday announced a significant policy move by doubling the upper limit of Mudra loans to Rs 20 lakh to promote entrepreneurship in the country.

During her Budget presentation in the Lok Sabha, she stated, ''The limit of Mudra loans will be enhanced to Rs 20 lakh from the current Rs 10 lakh for those entrepreneurs who have availed and successfully repaid previous loans under the 'Tarun category'.''

Launched on April 8, 2015, by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Pradhan Mantri MUDRA Yojana (PMMY) facilitates easy collateral-free micro-credit of up to Rs 10 lakh to non-corporate, non-farm small and micro-entrepreneurs for income-generating activities. Loans under PMMY are provided by Member Lending Institutions (MLIs) such as banks, non-banking financial companies (NBFCs), microfinance institutions (MFIs), and other financial intermediaries. Existing schemes provide collateral-free loans up to Rs 10 lakh under three categories: Shishu, Kishore, and Tarun.

''Our government is committed to all-round, all-pervasive, and all-inclusive development of people, particularly farmers, youth, women, and the poor,'' she asserted. To achieve comprehensive social justice, a saturation approach will be adopted to cover all eligible people through various programs, including education and health, to empower them by improving their capabilities.

The Finance Minister also mentioned the implementation of schemes such as PM Vishwakarma, PM SVANidhi, National Livelihood Missions, and Stand-Up India to support economic activities by craftsmen, artisans, self-help groups, scheduled caste, scheduled tribe and women entrepreneurs, and street vendors. To improve the socio-economic condition of tribal communities, the Pradhan Mantri Janjatiya Unnat Gram Abhiyan will be launched, aiming for saturation coverage for tribal families in tribal-majority villages and aspirational districts, benefiting 63,000 villages and 5 crore tribal people.

Additionally, the Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) will expand its reach to serve all major MSME clusters within three years, with new branches slated to open. This year alone, 24 new branches will be launched, expanding service coverage to 168 out of 242 major clusters.

(With inputs from agencies.)