SUMMARY
FM Nirmala Sitharaman said the government has extended 43 Cr loans amounting to INR 22.5 Lakh Cr under Pradhan Mantri MUDRA Yojana
Of these, nearly 70% loans have been given to women entrepreneurs
Sitharaman pointed out that girls and women constitute 43% enrolment in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) courses in India now
Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday said that the government has distributed 30 Cr loans to women entrepreneurs under the Pradhan Mantri MUDRA Yojana (PMMY) in the last 10 years.
Presenting the interim Budget for 2024-25, the finance minister said that the government has extended 43 Cr loans amounting to INR 22.5 Lakh Cr under PMMY till February 1. Of these, nearly 70% loans have been given to women entrepreneurs.
“The empowerment of women through entrepreneurship, ease of living, and dignity for them has gained momentum in these ten years,” the finance minister said in her speech.
The FM also said that female enrolment in higher education has gone up by 28% in the past 10 years. She further pointed out that girls and women constitute 43% enrolment in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) courses in India. “All these measures are getting reflected in the increasing participation of women in the workforce,” she added.
The PMMY scheme was launched by the government on April 8, 2015 for providing loans of up to 10 Lakh to the non-corporate, non-farm small/micro enterprises. These loans are classified as MUDRA loans under PMMY. These loans are given by commercial banks, regional rural banks, small finance banks, microfinance institutions and non banking financial corporations.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi took to X to laud the FM’s announcement. “Under PM Mudra Yojana, more than 30 crore collateral-free loans have been given to women entrepreneurs. This is not only boosting their entrepreneurial ambitions but also ensuring better growth in the country.”
The government has taken a number of initiatives over the last few years to promote startups in the country. Encouraging women entrepreneurs and increasing participation of women in the workforce is a key part of this initiative.
As part of this, President Droupadi Murmu launched a startup platform called ‘Her Start’ for women entrepreneurs in October 2022.
As a result, the number of women founders have increased in the Indian startup ecosystem. A number of women investors also feature prominently in the homegrown startup ecosystem.
According to Inc42’s Indian Tech Startup Funding Report 2023, women led startups raised a funding of over $475 Mn last year in 118 deals. However, this was a 80% drop from the $2.4 Bn secured in 2022 and around 90% from the $4.7 Bn women led startups secured in 2021.
Recently, union minister Smriti Irani criticised venture capital (VC) funds for not backing enough women-led innovative startups and instead focussing more on entities founded by men. The union minister for women and child development also suggested that business schools impart negotiating skills to their students, especially girls.
