'Main Bhi Digital' to attract street vendors

Bengaluru: The National Livelihoods Mission Department has taken steps to attract the street vendors who do business in cash every day to digital business transactions. This is why the project "Main Bhi Digital" has been created and awareness is being created. The department has thought of organizing training programs for dealing digitally with all the eligible street vendors who have already received loans and facilities under the Pradhan Mantri Svanidhi Yojana.

Recently there was a detailed discussion about this in a progress review meeting of senior officials at the level of Union Housing and Urban Affairs Secretaries and Union Finance Ministry Secretaries. Senior officials of Rashtriya Jeevanopaya Abhiyan have informed that street vendors who have already received loan facility under the PM Self-Employment Scheme have been consulted about doing business digitally.

All the city and local bodies organizing Samriddhi Mela from PM self-funding are advised to organize "Main Bhi Digital" camp along with this Mela. In addition, it has been advised to create awareness among street vendors about digital business and convenience through information, education and communication activities. In addition, the concerned authorities have been informed to take steps to provide QR code to conduct digital business through all major banks.

There are about 1.5 lakh street vendors within the city of Bangalore. About 80,000 of them have taken loans under Pradhan Mantri Svanidhi Yojana for street vendors. The Federation of Karnataka Street Traders Organizations said that the government has not yet sanctioned loans to the remaining 70,000 traders. There are about 5 lakh street vendors across the state. Out of this only 1.9 lakh people have got loans. Many North Indian states, including Uttar Pradesh, are at the forefront of getting solar facilities under the PM Svanidhi Yojana. But Karnataka is ranked sixth in the utilization of this scheme.

The state lags behind in borrowing under the Pradhan Mantri Svanidhi Yojana. Banks are troubling when it comes to lending. Also, the state government is not as enthusiastic as it claims to be in implementing this project said, Rangaswamy, State President, Karnataka Federation of Street Traders Organisations.