Vishwakarma scheme attracts over 8.5 lakh applications from Tamil Nadu

Over 8.52 lakh applications received from Tamil Nadu under PMVY, with State government objecting to verification process.

As many as 8.52 lakh applications have been received from Tamil Nadu under the Pradhan Mantri Vishwakarma Yojana (PMVY), a Central scheme that has come in for strong objection from the State government. 

The detail regarding the number of applications was provided in a reply by Union Minister of State for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME), Shobha Karandlaje, in the Lok Sabha on Thursday (December 12, 2024). The scheme, launched on September 17, 2023, attracted a total of nearly 2.61 crore applications across the country as on December 6.  

Only one beneficiary from Tamil Nadu, according to the reply, has been registered. However, an official in the State MSME department says there is “absolutely, no way of us having cleared any application,” as the government has not put in place any mechanism for the verification of applications. Neither the basic task of screening of applications has been done by village administrative officers (VAOs) nor the district-level committees, headed by Collectors, have been set up or approving the recommendations of VAOs, the official adds. Under such circumstances, the software system, governing the PMVY, might have registered, on its own, the purported sole beneficiary.  

In fact, the manner of verification is one of the issues over which the State government has differed with the Centre. As per the Union government’s guidelines, the first step of screening for the artisans and craftspeople enrolled under the scheme  will be through the head of village panchayat/ chairman of village council or executive head/ administrator of the urban local body. But, the State government’s position is that the VAOs, who come under the jurisdiction of the Revenue department, have to be involved.   

Asked whether the State government will automatically bring under its fold for its scheme - Kalaignar Kaivinai Thittam(KKT) - all those who had applied for the Central scheme, a top official of the State government replies that the applicants have to apply afresh through the portal developed for the scheme (https://www.msmeonline.tn.gov.in/kkt/index.php)

Asserting that the application process for the State’s scheme is “much simple,” the top official says that stipulations regarding the eligibility including age are “slightly different from the Viswakarma scheme.” Those who are aged above 35 years are eligible under the KKT with five year minimum experience in one of the listed 25 trades. 

Under the scheme, a credit-linked subsidy up to ₹ 50,000 [or 25% of the loan value] will be offered with the maximum credit being ₹ 3 lakh. The State government has permitted the Tamil Nadu Industrial Cooperative (TAICO) Bank to set apart ₹75 crore under the Kalaignar Credit Assistance Scheme for the KKT. The coverage of the State Credit Guarantee Scheme will  be modified to accommodate services and trades for loans under the KKT.