SRINAGAR: Tejaswini Scheme is providing financial assistance to the young women of J&K for setting up gainful self-employment ventures, suited to their skills, training, aptitude and local conditions.
To empower and encourage women for income generation for activities either in manufacturing/ service/ trading/ small business etc, J&K Government is facilitating soft finance for setting up new unit/enterprise or for expansion/modernization of existing Unit.
Pertinently, the scheme launched by Lieutenant Governor, Manoj Sinha, in June, 2021 is a start up funding programme for adolescents and young women of the UT making them empowered and self dependent through their own business ventures.
The broad aim of the scheme is to provide financial assistance to the young women of 18 to 35 years of age for setting up gainful self-employment ventures, suited to their skills, training, aptitude and local conditions.
Under the scheme, female entrepreneurs shall be facilitated to avail financial assistance under Mudra from J&K Bank to the extent of Rs 5 lakh.
Mission Youth, J&K shall provide an amount of Rs 50,000 or 10% of project cost as subsidy. Besides, interest component of the loan shall also be sponsored by Mission Youth as special incentive and repayment of loan will technically be interest free for the young female entrepreneurs who apply for assistance under the scheme.
The scheme intends to provide assistance to all eligible young women who are domiciles of J&K and have a qualification of matriculation and above. It will also cater to enterprises where women entrepreneurs hold not less than 50% of financial holding, besides providing assistance to set up women centric businesses and micro start-ups.
In view of low participation of women in various entrepreneurial and livelihood generation activities, Mission Youth has conceptualized this scheme for young women of J&K to uplift status of women in the society.
Mission Youth has set a target to cover 2000 women entrepreneurs under the scheme during the current financial year. A budgetary component of Rs. 12 crore has been earmarked by Mission Youth on account of government subsidy for the scheme for the current financial year. The scheme has the distinction of being the first of its kind under which repayment of financial assistance will be interest free. It has been specifically modelled to ensure that businesses set up by these young women turn into viable and flourishing enterprises.
The Government also helps the young aspiring women entrepreneurs in acquisition of fixed assets (Plant & Machinery, equipment, furniture & fixtures) and meet the working capital needs for purchase of various products /equipments/tools etc.
The scheme is proving a significant step towards boosting employment scenario in J&K where unemployment rate is higher than the national average.
The women entrepreneurs do not have to visit any office for the purpose and the Mission Youth has come out with an online portal for end to end process of applications.