Lok Sabha Question No. 929 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-02-10
Subject: Women Entrepreneurship Schemes
Ministry: SKILL DEVELOPMENT AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Asked by: Smt. Delkar Kalaben Mohanbhai, Shri Bhumare Sandipanrao Asaram, Shri Gyaneshwar Patil

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

## MINISTRY OF SKILL DEVELOPMENT AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.  929

ANSWERED ON 10/02/2025

## WOMEN ENTREPRENEURSHIP SCHEMES

- † 929.   SMT. DELKAR KALABEN MOHANBHAI:

SHRI BHUMARE SANDIPANRAO ASARAM:

Will the Minister of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship be pleased to state:

- (a) the  number of women benefited from entrepreneurship schemes in Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Madhya Pradesh and Sambhajinagar (Aurangabad) of Maharashtra during the last five years;
- (b) the special programmes being implemented by the Government in the said States/UTs targeting women entrepreneurs; and
- (c) whether the Government is contemplating introduction of additional support measures to help women start small scale businesses in rural and tribal areas?

## ANSWER

THE  MINISTER  OF  STATE  (INDEPENDENT  CHARGE)  IN  THE  MINISTRY  OF  SKILL DEVELOPMENT AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP

(SHRI JAYANT CHAUDHARY)

(a) to (c)   Government of India has taken various initiatives to build entrepreneurial mindsets and  capabilities  among  women,  support  the  growth  of  women-led  enterprises,  and  provide mentoring and handholding support for entrepreneurship development among women.

The Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) through its autonomous organizations, namely National Institute for Entrepreneurship and Small Business Development  (NIESBUD)  and  Indian  Institute  of  Entrepreneurship  (IIE)  has  taken  various initiatives  to  promote  entrepreneurship  development  amongst  all  sections  of  the  society, including women across the country, including Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Madhya Pradesh and Sambhajinagar (Aurangabad) of Maharashtra. The details of few such initiatives undertaken during the last five years are  at Annexure-I.

Further,  there  are  various  schemes/  programmes  being  implemented  by  Ministries/ Departments of Government of India with the objective of promoting entrepreneurs, including female  entrepreneurs.  The  details  of  some  of  the  key  initiatives  implemented  by  other Ministries/  Departments  in  Dadra  and  Nagar  Haveli,  Madhya  Pradesh  and  Sambhajinagar (Aurangabad) of Maharashtra are at Annexure-II .

SHRI GYANESHWAR PATIL:

## ANNEXURES  REFERRED  TO  IN  REPLY  OF  PART  (a)  to  (c)  OF  LOK  SABHA UNSTARRED  QUESTION  NO.  929  ANSWERED  ON  10.02.2025  REGARDING  'WOMEN ENTREPRENEURSHIP SCHEMES'

The details of various initiatives being implemented by the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship for women entrepreneurs during the last five years are as under:

1. Strengthening  Entrepreneurial  Climate  through  Capacity  Building,  Incubation Support,  Mentoring,  and  Handholding  under  SANKALP  Scheme -  MSDE  though NIESBUD implemented a project for strengthening the entrepreneurship ecosystem of different marginalized sections of the society and women with the support of the Skills Acquisition and Knowledge  Awareness  for  Livelihood  Promotion  (SANKALP)  Scheme  of  MSDE,  since December  2022.  The  project  aimed  at  creating,  fostering  and  promoting  the  spirit  of entrepreneurship  among  the  various  target  groups  through  Capacity  Building,  Incubation Support,  Mentoring  and  Handholding.  SANKALP  has  been  implemented  in  three  phases. Under SANKALP 1, a total of 23825 beneficiaries have been trained during Financial Years 2022-23 to 2024-25, out of which 13861 are women, including 2166 women beneficiaries in Madhya Pradesh. Under SANKALP 2, a total of 23841 beneficiaries have been trained during Financial  Year 2022-23 to  2024-25,  out  of which  18270 are  women, including 1819  women beneficiaries in Madhya Pradesh. Under SANKALP 3, a total of 4274 beneficiaries have been trained  during  Financial Year 2024-25, out of which 2970 are women, including 755 women beneficiaries in Madhya Pradesh.
2. Skill  Strengthening  for  Industrial  Value  Enhancement  (STRIVE) -  Under  the  Skill Strengthening for Industrial Value Enhancement (STRIVE) of MSDE, NIESBUD has conducted awareness  and  sensitization  programmes  at  National  Skill  Training  Institutes  (NSTIs)  and Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) between October 2023 to May 2024. These activities were followed  by  the  selection  of  prospective  entrepreneurs  to  undergo  the  Entrepreneurship Development Programme (EDP). The Institute has successfully conducted EDP training for the target groups and is providing mentoring and handholding support to help trainees establish their enterprises. A total of 4773 beneficiaries have been trained under the project during F.Y. 2024-25 in the State of Madhya Pradesh, including 1195 women.
3.          Pradhan  Mantri  Janjati  Adivasi  Nyaya  Maha  Abhiyan  (PM  JANMAN)  MSDE through its autonomous institute, NIESBUD is implementing the skilling and entrepreneurship component  of  Pradhan  Mantri  Janjati  Adivasi  Nyaya  Maha  Abhiyaan  (PM  JANMAN)  -  a scheme  of  Ministry  of  Tribal  Affairs  for  upliftment  of  Particularly  Vulnerable  Tribal  Groups (PVTGs),  since  March  2024.  The  project  is  being  implemented  with  support  of  Tribal Cooperative  Marketing  Development  Federation  of  India  (TRIFED)  in  18  States  across  the country under which a total of 500 VDVKs are to be set up. A total of 4851 beneficiaries have been trained under the project during 2024-25 in the State of Madhya Pradesh, including 3587 women.
4.    Rashtriya Udyamita Vikas Pariyojana on Pilot Basis for PM Svanidhi Beneficiaries MSDE, in collaboration with the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA), launched the Rashtriya  Udyamita  Vikas  Pariyojana  (RUVP)  on  a  pilot  basis  in  February  2024  for  PM SVANidhi  beneficiaries,  with  NIESBUD  as  one  of  the  implementing  partners.  Through  the project, entrepreneurship training was provided to 1744 PM-SVANidhi beneficiaries across 10 cities,  with  more  than  40%  participation  from  women.The  program  included  one  week  of classroom training followed by 21 weeks of mentoring and hand-holding support. A total of 180 beneficiaries have been trained under the project during F.Y. 2023-24 in the State of Madhya Pradesh, including 137 women.
5.    Entrepreneurial  Climate  through Training of Trainers (ToTs) and Entrepreneurship Development  Programme  (EDP)  in  Jan  Shikshan  Sansthans  (JSSs)  NIESBUD  has implemented  a  project  for  creating  entrepreneurial  climate  through  the  Training  of  Trainers

(ToTs) and the Entrepreneurship Development Programme (EDP) in Jan Shikshan Sansthans (JSSs) from October 2022 to September 2023. The project aimed at creating, fostering and promoting  the  spirit  of  entrepreneurship  among  the  various  target  groups  through  Capacity Building, Mentoring and Handholding. A total of 630 beneficiaries have been trained under the project during F.Y. 2022-23 to 2023-24 in the State of Madhya Pradesh, including 545 women.

6.         Pilot  Project  for  Entrepreneurship  Development  Program  (EDP)  NIESBUD implemented  a  Pilot  Project  for  Entrepreneurship  Development  Program  in  10  States supported by the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, from January 2020 to March 2023, which aimed at creating, fostering and promoting the spirit of entrepreneurship among the target groups through Entrepreneurship Development Programme, Mentoring and Handholding support. A total of 700 beneficiaries have been trained under the project during F.Y. 2023-24 in the State of Madhya Pradesh, including 477 women.

The details of various initiatives being implemented by other Ministries/ Departments of Government of India for women entrepreneurs are as under:

1.   Department  for Promotion of Industry  and Internal Trade  (DPIIT) under Ministry  of Commerce and Industry The Government with an intent to  build  a  strong  ecosystem for nurturing innovation and encouraging investments launched the Startup India initiative on 16th January 2016. As per eligibility conditions prescribed under G.S.R. notification 127 (E) dated 19th February 2019, entities are recognized as 'startups' under the Startup India initiative by the  Department  for  Promotion  of  Industry  and  Internal  Trade  (DPIIT).  As  on  31 st December 2024,  1,57,706  entities  have  been  recognized  as  startups  by  DPIIT,  out  of  which,  75,935 entities have self-reported to have at least one-woman  director/partner. Out of the 75,935 entities recognised as startups by DPIIT which have self-reported to have at least onewoman director/partner, 34 are from Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, 2,396 are from Madhya Pradesh and 13,947 are from Maharashtra.

Further,  the  Government  is  implementing  specific  initiatives/programmes  under  the  Startup India  initiative  to  promote  women  entrepreneurship  across  the  country.  The  details  of  such initiatives are as under:

- i. To promote flow of both equity and debt to women led startups, 10% of the fund in the Fund of Funds for Startups Scheme operated by Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) is reserved for women-led startups.
- ii. Alternative Investment Funds (AIFs) led by women are eligible to be considered for a higher level of management fee (0.1% per annum). The same benefit is also extended to AIFs which are focused on women led startups.
- iii. Under Credit Guarantee Scheme for Startups (CGSS), for availing the guarantee cover, the Member Institution pays Annual Guarantee Fee (AGF) of 2% per annum (p.a.) of the disbursement/outstanding amount. For units from the North East region as well as those  of  women  entrepreneurs,  the  Member  Institution  pays  a  standard  rate  of  1.5% p.a. of the disbursement/outstanding amount.
- iv. Women Capacity Development Programme (WING) is a unique Capacity Development Program for women-led startups, to identify and support both aspiring and established women entrepreneurs in their startup journeys. The workshops are open to variety of business  sectors  including  Tech,  Construction,  Product,  Machine,  Food,  Agriculture, Education, etc. The workshops serve as a platform for emerging women entrepreneurs and  other  stakeholders  to  discuss  the  key  challenges  facing  women  entrepreneurs. WING  workshops  create  a  conducive  environment  to  share  best  practices  and experiences in overcoming challenges and to gain insights learned from the business models adopted in the Indian context.
- v. A  Virtual  Incubation  Program  for  Women  Entrepreneurs  was  conducted  to  support women-led tech startups with pro-bono acceleration support.
- vi. Startup India Hub: A webpage dedicated to women entrepreneurs has been designed on  the  Startup  India  portal.  The  page  includes  various  policy  measures  for  women entrepreneurs by both Central and State Governments.
- vii. ASCEND  Startup  Workshop  Series and  Women  for Startups  Workshops: The Government organized a series of startup workshops - ASCEND (Accelerating Startup Calibre  &  Entrepreneurial  Drive),  for  the  entrepreneurs,  aspiring  entrepreneurs,  and students  from  North-eastern  region.  In  addition,  the  workshops  are  conducted  with  a specific focus on women entrepreneurs across the northeastern states. The workshops have  witnessed participation from ecosystem  stakeholders  such as  government officials, startups, aspiring entrepreneurs, investors, academic institutions, etc.
- viii. SuperStree  Podcast:  With  a  vision  to  inspire  a  greater  number  of  women  across  all regions  in  India  to  become  entrepreneurs,  the  SuperStree  video  podcast  series  has been  launched  on  women  in  the  Indian  Startup  Ecosystem.  The  podcast  spreads awareness  related  to  innovations  from  women  and  to  further  strengthen  women entrepreneurship in the country.
- ix. Through various awareness programmes and capacity building programmes organized by the Government,  and  through  print media  and  social media  platforms, the Government also creates awareness about the existing schemes which support micro, small and medium entrepreneurs, including women entrepreneurs.
- x. Women For Startups:  State  Workshops  for  Women  Entrepreneurs  were  held  across States  to  build  the  capacity  of  aspiring  and  existing  women  entrepreneurs.  The workshops  focused  on  government  scheme  awareness,  mock  pitching,  and  financerelated training.
- xi. The States' Startup Ranking on support to startup ecosystems is primarily an exercise to identify good practices across all the Indian states. The evaluation includes a specific provision to gauge the formulation and implementation of policies and special incentives to promote women-led startups in each state. The particular action point has witnessed active  engagement  and  thereon  reporting  of  measures  undertaken  by  participating States and UTs.
- xii. To  identify  the  depth,  quality  and  spread  of  innovation,  inclusivity  and  diversity,  and entrepreneurship  in  country,  the  Government  instituted  the  National  Startup  Awards (NSA).  NSA  recognizes  and promotes startups across 20 sectors and special categories. All four editions of the NSA (2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023) have featured a special category and award for women-led startups.
- xiii. Pitch  Forward  is  an  initiative  to  provide  women  entrepreneurs,  especially  from  nonmetros, a platform to connect with marquee investors. It offers startups across various stages and sectors the opportunity to pitch directly to venture capital funds.

2. Ministry of Science and Technology is launching and implementing the Innovation based Science and Technology Entrepreneurship Training Programme Central Sector scheme. The scheme  is  not  a  centrally  sponsored  scheme  as  such  the  proposal  are  not  received  and sanctioned  State-wise  and  District-wise  under  the  scheme.  The  scheme  encourages  the Women's participants to take entrepreneurship as a career from all over the country including from  the  State  of  Madhya  Pradesh,  Maharashtra  and  UT  of  Dadra  and  Nagar  Haveli.  The training programmes successfully organized for Women participants in the area of Innovation based  Science  &  Technology  Entrepreneurship  for  the  State  of  Madhya  Pradesh,  and Maharashtra in last five years are as under:

| Sl.No   | State          | Women Entrepreneurship Development Programme (WEDP)   | Women Entrepreneurship Development Programme (WEDP)   | Women Entrepreneurship Development Programme (WEDP)   | Women Entrepreneurship Development Programme (WEDP)   | Women Entrepreneurship Development Programme (WEDP)   |
|---------|----------------|-------------------------------------------------------|-------------------------------------------------------|-------------------------------------------------------|-------------------------------------------------------|-------------------------------------------------------|
|         |                | 2019-20                                               | 2020-21                                               | 2021-22                                               | 2022-23                                               | 2023-24                                               |
| 1.      | Madhya Pradesh | 9                                                     | 364                                                   | -                                                     | 87                                                    | 125                                                   |
| 2.      | Maharashtra    | -                                                     | 168                                                   | -                                                     | 58                                                    | 210                                                   |

3. Ministry of Women and Child Development - "Government of India implements 'Mission Shakti'  -  an  integrated  women  empowerment  programme  as  umbrella  scheme  for  safety, security and empowerment of women. The Umbrella Scheme of Mission Shakti has two subschemes namely "Sambal" and "Samarthya".

'Samarthya'  sub-scheme,  has  a  component  i.e.  Hub  for  Empowerment  of  Women (HEW)  known  as  SANKALP:  HEW  (Supportive  Action  for  Nurturing  and  Knowledge-Based Advancement, Last-Mile Delivery and Potential Realization of Women : Hub for Empowerment of Women), set up at National, State and District levels for empowerment of women with aims to facilitate inter-sectoral convergence of schemes and programs meant for women at Central, State/  UT  and  district  levels  with  the  mandate  to  create  an  environment  in  which  women realize their full potential to address gaps in state action for women and for promoting interministerial and inter-sectoral convergence through strengthening the processes that promote holistic  empowerment of women by creating an environment conducive to social change by improving access and utilization of government schemes.

The support under the HEW is for guiding, linking and hand holding women to various institutional  and  schematic  set  ups  for  their  empowerment  and  development  including facilitating access to healthcare, quality education, career and vocational counselling/ training, financial  inclusion,  entrepreneurship,  backward  and  forward  linkages,  health  and  safety  for workers, social security and digital literacy at districts/ Blocks/ Gram Panchayats level across the country.

SANKALP: HEW is being implemented in all States/UTs except the State of West Bengal and is  functional in  35 States/UTs. As on date, total 35 State SANKALP: HEWs and 742 District SANKALP: HEWs are functional.

4.     Department  of  Agriculture  and  Farmers'  Welfare  Department  of  Agriculture  and Farmers'  Welfare  is  implementing  various  schemes  and  programmes  for  the  farmers  and agripreneurs,  including  women  agripreneurs.  The  Government  of  India  is  implementing 'Innovation and Agri-Entrepreneurship Development' programme under Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana  (RKVY)  from  2018-19  onwards  with  an  objective  to  promote  innovation  and  agrientrepreneurship by providing financial support and nurturing an incubation ecosystem in the country.

The Agri-Clinic  and  Agribusiness  Centers  Scheme  (AC &  ABC)  is  under  implementation since  April,  2002.  The  Scheme  aims  at  creating  gainful  self-employment  opportunities  to unemployed agricultural graduates, agricultural diploma holders, and intermediate in agriculture apart from science graduates with post-graduation in agriculture related courses for supporting agriculture development and supplementing the efforts of public extension with the support of National Institute of Agricultural Extension Management (MANAGE) and NABARD.

5. Ministry  of  Housing  and  Urban  Affairs was  implementing  the  'Deendayal  Antyodaya Yojana -National Urban Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NULM)' from February 2016 to 30 th September, 2024. The mission aimed to reduce poverty and vulnerability of urban poor households by enabling them to access gainful self-employment and skilled wage employment opportunities,  in  order  to  improve  their  livelihoods  on  a  sustainable  basis,  through  building strong  grassroots  level  institutions  of  the  urban  poor  including  women. Self  Help  Groups (SHGs) are formed by only women.

The women employment generated in the State of Madhya Pradesh during last 5 years including current year (till 27.01.2025) under DAY-NULM is as under:

-  No. of  Skilled Candidates Placed -  47,013
-  No. of  SHGs members formed - 3,94,592
-  No. of Beneficiaries assisted for setting up individual/ Group Micro Enterprises - 17,174
-  No. of SHGs women member disbursed loans under Bank linkage Programme1,35,039

The  women  employment  generated  in  the  State  of  Maharashtra  during  last  5  years including current year (till 27.01.2025) under DAY-NULM is as under:

-  No. of  Skilled Candidates Placed -  41,451
-  No. of  SHGs members formed - 5,87,514
-  No. of Beneficiaries assisted for setting up individual/ Group Micro Enterprises- 16,226
-  No. of SHGs women member disbursed loans under Bank linkage Programme4,42,056
-  A total 305 women benefited skill training under DAY-NULM in Sambhajinagar during last five years

6. Ministry  of  Minority  Affairs implemented  'Nai  Roshni',  a  Leadership  Development programme for Minority Women, which was launched in 2012-13 with an objective to empower and instill confidence among minority women by providing knowledge, tools and techniques for interacting  with  Government  systems,  banks and other institutions at  all levels.  The  training module covers areas related to programmes for Women, Health and Hygiene, Legal rights of women,  Financial  Literacy,  Digital  Literacy,  Swachh  Bharat,  Life  Skills,  and  Advocacy  for Social  and  Behavioural  changes.  Nai  Roshni  Scheme  has  now  been  converged  as  a component  into  an  integrated  scheme  called  'Pradhan  Mantri  Virasat  ka  Samvardhan  (PM VIKAS)', which has following three sub-components:

-  Leadership and Basic Entrepreneurship Development;
-  Entrepreneurship Development
-  Business Mentors/ Business Correspondents (Biz Sakhis/Udyami Mitra).

The total  number  of  women  benefited  from the Nai  Roshni scheme in  Dadra and  Nagar Haveli, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra during the last five years i.e. 2019-20 to 2023-24, is as under:

|   Sl. No. | Name of State          | Total Beneficiaries in last five years (2019-20 to 2023-24)   |
|-----------|------------------------|---------------------------------------------------------------|
|         1 | Dadra and Nagar Haveli | -                                                             |
|         2 | Madhya Pradesh         | 3,875                                                         |
|         3 | Maharashtra            | 675                                                           |

7.     Ministry  of  Food  Processing  Industry  (MoFPI) has  launched  the  Pradhan  Mantri Formalisation of Micro Food Processing Enterprises (PMFME) scheme under the Aatmanirbhar  Bharat  Abhiyan  with  the  aim  to  enhance  the  competitiveness  of  existing individual micro-enterprises in the unorganized segment of the food processing industry and promote formalization  of the sector. The scheme  has a special focus on supporting Groups engaged in Agri-food processing such as Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs), Self Help Groups  (SHGs)  and  Producers Cooperatives  along  their  entire  value  chain.  SHG  members can receive seed capital of ₹40,000 per member for working capital and the purchase of small tools. The scheme also provides a 50% financial grant for branding and marketing support to groups  of  FPOs,  SHGs,  Cooperatives,  or  a  Special  Purpose  Vehicle  (SPV)  of  micro  food processing  enterprises.  Under  the  PMFME  Scheme,  717  women  SHG  Beneficiaries  got benefitted  from  seed  capital  in  the  State  of  Madhya  Pradesh  and  962  women  SHG Beneficiaries from Sambhajinagar (Aurangabad).
8. Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) - The Entrepreneurship and Skill Development Programme (ESDP) Scheme is a Central Sector continuing scheme, which was up scaled in November 2019. The objective of the programme is to motivate young person  representing  different  sections  of  the  society  including  SC/ST  women,  physically handicapped,  Ex-servicemen,  and  Below  Poverty  Line  (BPL)  persons  to  consider  selfemployment  or  entrepreneurship  as  one  of  the  career  options.  The  ultimate  objective  is  to promote  new  enterprises,  build  capacity  of  existing  MSMEs  and  inculcate  entrepreneurial culture  in  the  country.  New  ESDP  guideline,  which  was  approved  on  25.3.2022,  has  five components namely:
- i. Entrepreneurship Awareness Programme (EAP)
- ii. Entrepreneurship cum Skill Development Programme (E-SDP)
- iii. Advance E-SDP - This component is newly added and is to be conducted by premier Institutes like IITs/IIMs/ ICAR/BARC/Agricultural Universities of State /Central Governments.
- iv. Management Development Programme (MDP)
- v. Advance MDP- It is newly added in the new guidelines approved for the 15 th Finance Commission which includes programme to be conducted by premier institutes like that of Advance E-SDP component.

The details of women beneficiaries trained under the ESDP scheme during the last five years is as under:

| Sl No.   | Financial Year            |   No. of Women Beneficiaries |
|----------|---------------------------|------------------------------|
| 1.       | 2020-21                   |                        13705 |
| 2.       | 2021-22                   |                        25371 |
| 3.       | 2022-23                   |                       121058 |
| 4.       | 2023-24                   |                       201706 |
| 5.       | 2024-25 (Till 03.02.2025) |                       173277 |
| Total    | Total                     |                       535117 |

The  details  of  women  beneficiaries  trained  under  the  ESDP  scheme  in  Dadra  and Nagar  Haveli,  Madhya  Pradesh  and  Sambhajinagar  (Aurangabad),  Maharashtra  during  the last five years is as under:

| Sl. No.   | Financial Year            | No. of women beneficiaries   | No. of women beneficiaries   | No. of women beneficiaries              |
|-----------|---------------------------|------------------------------|------------------------------|-----------------------------------------|
|           |                           | Dadra and Nagar Haveli       | Madhya Pradesh               | (Sambhajinagar (Aurangabad) Maharashtra |
| 1.        | 2020-21                   | 117                          | 479                          | 60                                      |
| 2.        | 2021-22                   | 172                          | 884                          | 31                                      |
| 3.        | 2022-23                   | 295                          | 22001                        | 248                                     |
| 4.        | 2023-24                   | 320                          | 22636                        | 472                                     |
| 5.        | 2024-25 (Till 03.02.2025) | 346                          | 32999                        | 910                                     |
| Total     | Total                     | 1250                         | 78999                        | 1721                                    |

9. Ministry  of  Textiles is  implementing  Samarth  (Scheme  for  Capacity  Building  in  Textiles Sector) with the objective to provide demand driven, placement-oriented skilling programmes to  supplement the efforts of the industry  in creating jobs in the  organized textile  and related sectors,  covering  the  entire  value  chain  of  textiles,  excluding  Spinning  and  Weaving  in organized  sector.  Samarth  is  implemented  on  demand  driven  basis  across  the  country  and preference  is  given  to  marginalized  social  groups  such  as  women,  SC/  ST  etc.  under  the scheme. As on 07.02.2025, 3,59,037 beneficiaries have been trained (passed) and of these 3,16,275  are  women.  7,086  are  women  beneficiaries  in  Madhya  Pradesh  and  1,261  are women beneficiaries in Dadra & Nagar Haveli.

10. Ministry  of  Social  Justice  and  Empowerment:The  Venture  Capital  Fund  for Scheduled  Castes  (VCF-SC)  and  Backward  Class  (VCF-BC)  women  launched  by  the Government and implemented through IFCl Venture Capital Limited, promotes entrepreneurship by providing concessional finance at the coupon rates of 3.75% and 5.75% respectively.  'Ambedkar  Social  Innovation  and  Incubation  Mission  (ASIIM)'  under  VCF-SC promotes young women researchers and students with their innovation by extending financial support of Rs. 30 lakh under the scheme. Under these schemes, 5 women beneficiaries have been covered in Aurangabad, Maharashtra during the last five years.

Further, with a view to promote innovation amongst SC women Students/ Researchers and those working in Technology Business Incubators (TBIs), Atal Incubation Centres (AIC) etc.  ,  SC  youths  are  identified  with  start-up  ideas  through  the  TBIs  in  various  higher educational institutions. They are funded maximum of Rs. 30 lakh in 3 years as equity funding so that they can translate their start-up ideas into commercial ventures. Successful ventures further qualifies for venture funding of up to Rs. 15 Crore from the VCF-SC so that they can translate their start-up ideas into commercial ventures.

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