PM Modi interacts with beneficiaries of Mudra Yojana

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday interacted with the beneficiaries of the Mudra Yojana (PMMY), saying that the scheme has been acting as a job multiplier, opening up new opportunities for the youth, women and those who want to start or expand their businesses.

"We trusted our small entrepreneurs. Under the money scheme, they were given a loan so that they could do their business. Money planning not only creates self-employment opportunities but is also working as a job-multiplier in itself," said Prime Minister Modi while speaking to the scheme's beneficiaries via NaMo app.

Pradhan Mantri MUDRA Yojana (PMMY) is one of Prime Minister Modi's flagship programmes, which was launched in April 2015 with the aim of providing loans up to Rs. 10 lakh to the non-corporate, non-farm small and micro enterprises.

The credit money under the project is classified as MUDRA loan and is given by commercial, co-operative and small finance banks as well as financial institutions like RRBs, MFIs, and NBFCs.

In his Tuesday's interaction, the prime minister hailed PMMY as a game-changer. "We have been facing the problem of license Raj in our country since independence. Also, there was a time when the finance minister had to personally make calls to pass the loans of businessmen, resulting in the small-sized businessmen being left behind. We have broken this vicious cycle," said Prime Minister Modi.

Prime Minister informed that so far 12 crore loans have been approved by the government over the last three years, out of which 75 percent were given to youth and women, 28 percent to first-time entrepreneurs and 55 percent to those belonging to the SC/ST and OBC category.

The Prime Minister also underlined how the initiative has played a vital role in social empowerment, adding that, by aiding small and micro businesses, people have been strengthened economically and socially.

For instance, a tea seller from Assam said the scheme has helped him expand his business, while another man from Jammu claimed that the PMMY led him to create jobs for others as well.

Prime Miniter Modi encouraged them to promote digital payments through the BHIM, a mobile app developed by National Payments Corporation of India, based on the Unified Payment Interface.