FM Sitharaman announces PM-VIKAS package for artisans and craftsmen; support for women in SFGs

"Traditional artisans and craftsmnen, who traditionally work with their hands, have brought glory to India for ages. They represent the true spirit of the 'Aatmanirbhar Bharat'. The new scheme will enable them to improve the quality, scale and quality of their products integrating them with MSME value chain," the FM said.

New Delhi:Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced a package for the assistance for the artisans and craftsmen of the country under the PM Vishwakarma Kaushal Samman (PM-VIKAS) Yojana, as she presented the Budget session 2023-24 on Wednesday. "For the first time, a package of assistance has been conceptualized for the artisans and craftsmen, also called as Vishwakarmas, of the country," she said.

"Traditional artisans and craftsmnen, who traditionally work with their hands, have brought glory to India for ages. They represent the true spirit of the 'Aatmanirbhar Bharat'. The new scheme will enable them to improve the quality, scale and quality of their products integrating them with MSME value chain," the FM said.

She further said that the 'Vishwakarmas' will get financial support, advance skill training, knowledge of modern efficient system, branch promotion, linkage with global and local market, digital payment and social security to enhance their small scale businesses. "This will benefit he SC, ST, OBC, women and people belonging to the weaker sections of the society," she added.

With focus on the strengthening of macro economic stability in the country, Sitharaman emphasized the importance of the economic empowerment of women. She said several rural women mobilised into self help groups under the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Urban Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NULM) would be given optimum facilities to make the best of their opportunities.

The Finance Minister further stated that many women, mostly from the rural areas of the country, have been mobilized into over 81 lakh self help groups under the DAY-NULM so far, and would be provided all sort of support from the government to expand their businesses.

"We will enable these groups to reach the next stage of economic empowerment through formation of large production enterprises or collectives, with each having several thousand members and monitored professionally," Sitharaman said , as she marked the DAY-NULM scheme to have remarkably succeeded with such high amount of rural women coming forward to avail the scheme.

Sitharaman said that these women will be helped raw material supply, and resources to help them with better design, quality, branding and marketing of their products. "Through supporting these policies they will be enabled to scale up their operations to serve the large consumer markets, as has been the case with several start ups growing into unicorns," Sitharaman said.