State to back young entrepreneurs

Mumbai: In a bid to create employment opportunities in Maharashtra, the industries department will roll out the Chief Minister Employment Generation Programme (CMEGP) on September 3.

Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis and Yuva Sena chief Aaditya Thackeray will be the chief guests at the programme to be held at NSCI, Worli.

Under the CMEGP, the government aims to provide financial help to 20,000 young entrepreneurs in a year, said an official.

The entrepreneurs will be provided loans up to '10 lakh in the service sector, and up to '50 lakh in the manufacturing sector.

Those interested will have to apply for the programme online. Someone who has studied up to Standard VIII will be eligible for a loan of up to '25 lakh, while a Standard X passout can apply for a loan of over '25 lakh. The applicants have to be below 45 years of age.

Two thousand applications have been received thus far, the official said. They will be scrutinised at the district level. Priority will be given to women and differently-abled (divyang) persons.

Harshdeep Kamble, secretary, industries department, said, “Under the CMEGP, the government will provide 15 per cent subsidy to an entrepreneur. The subsidy will be credited to the bank accounts.”

“Forty per cent of the entrepreneurs will be selected from rural parts of the state, while the remaining 60 per cent will be from semi-urban and urban parts of the state,” he added.

Mr Kamble said that the Credit Guarantee Fund Trust for Micro and Small Enterprises (CGTMSE) will take guarantee for the loan and collateral security will not be taken from the applicants.