PM Inaugurated World Class “Yashobhoomi,” Launched PM Vishwakarma Scheme for Artisans
NEW DELHI, Sept 17: The Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday launched the ‘PM Vishwakarma’ scheme on the occasion of ‘Vishwakarma Jayanti’, under which traditional craftsmen and artisans will be provided loan assistance at a minimal interest rate without the need for collateral.
The Prime Minister also dedicated to the nation the ₹ 5,400-crore Phase 1 of the state-of-the art India International Convention and Expo Centre (IICC) — ‘Yashobhoomi’ — at Dwarka in New Delhi where a large number of artisans have given stalls.
With a financial outlay of ₹ 13,000 crore for a period of five years, the PM Vishwakarma’ scheme will benefit about 30 lakh families of traditional artisans and craftsmen, including weavers, goldsmiths, blacksmiths, laundry workers, and barbers.
The goal of the scheme is to enhance the accessibility and quality of products and services offered by traditional artisans and craftsmen. The scheme offers collateral-free enterprise development loans of ₹ 1 lakh (first tranche for 18 months repayment) and ₹ 2 lakh (second tranche for 30 months repayment).
A concessional rate of interest of 5 per cent will be charged from the beneficiary with interest subvention cap of 8 per cent to be paid by the Ministry of Micro Small and Medium Enterprises. The credit guarantee fees will be borne by the central government.
The scheme also entails benefits such as recognition as a Vishwakarma through a certificate and ID card and skill verification followed by 5-7 days (40 hours) of basic training. Interested candidates can also enrol for 15 days (120 hours) of advanced training and a stipend of ₹ 500 per day will be provided.
Besides, a ₹ 15,000 grant will be provided as a toolkit incentive and an incentive for digital transaction of ₹ 1 per transaction for up to 100 transactions monthly.
A National Committee for Marketing (NCM) will provide services such as Quality Certification, Branding & Promotion, E-commerce linkage, Trade Fairs advertising, publicity and other marketing activities.
An artisan or craftsperson working with hands and tools and engaged in one of the 18 family-based traditional trades mentioned in the scheme, in the unorganised sector on a self-employment basis, shall be eligible for registration under PM Vishwakarma. The minimum age of the beneficiary should be 18 years on the date of registration.
With a total project area of over 8.9 lakh square metres and built-up area of more than 1.8 lakh square metres, ‘Yashobhoomi’ will find its place among the world’s largest MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions) facilities.
‘Yashobhoomi’ boasts of a magnificent convention centre, multiple exhibition halls and other facilities.
The convention centre, built across more than 73,000 square metres, comprises 15 convention rooms, including the main auditorium, the grand ballroom and 13 meeting rooms with a total capacity of holding 11,000 delegates.
The convention centre has the largest LED media facade in the country. The plenary hall in the convention centre has the seating capacity of around 6,000 guests.
The auditorium has an innovative automated seating system which converts the flat floor into an auditorium style tiered seating for different seating configurations.
The Grand Ballroom can host around 2,500 guests. It also has an extended open area with seating capacity of up to 500 people. The 13 meeting rooms that are spread across eight floors are envisaged to hold a variety of meetings of different scales.
‘Yashobhoomi’ will also be connected to Delhi Airport Metro Express line with the inauguration of the new metro station ‘Yashobhoomi Dwarka Sector 25’. Delhi Metro will also increase the operational speed of Metro trains on Airport Express Line from 90 to 120 kilometre per hour reducing the travel time. The total journey from ‘New Delhi’ to ‘Yashobhoomi Dwarka Sector 25’ will take about 21 minutes.
(Manas Dasgupta)
