To boost self-employment in Uttarakhand, the state government has proposed a new self-employment policy that will provide loans up to four times higher than the current limit for starting small businesses. The proposal, which merges the existing Mukhyamantri Swarozgar Yojana (MSY) and the Mukhyamantri Atisookshma Swarozgar Yojana (Nano Scheme), is expected to be approved in the upcoming cabinet meeting. Under the revised policy, the loan limit for small businesses will be raised from ₹50,000 to ₹2 lakh.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, both schemes were launched to address unemployment, with MSY offering loans from ₹10 to ₹25 lakh with a 15–25% subsidy for manufacturing, services, and trade sectors. The Nano Scheme offered ₹50,000 loans with a 25–35% subsidy for micro-businesses.
As per Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami’s directions, the industries department has prepared the integrated policy aimed at connecting 50,000 individuals to self-employment in the next five years.
Proposed Subsidy Structure:
- Project Cost:
- Up to ₹2 lakh
- ₹2 to ₹10 lakh
- ₹10 to ₹25 lakh
- Subsidy (A & B category areas):
- 30%, 25%, 20%
- Subsidy (C & D category areas):
- 25%, 20%, 15%
Additionally, the policy offers a 5% extra subsidy for women. Extra benefits will also be given for starting businesses in rural or Nagar Panchayat areas and for manufacturing GI-tagged or ODOP (One District One Product) items.
