Swachhta Udyami Yojana

The National Safai Karamcharis Finance and Development Corporation (NSKFDC), an Apex Corporation of the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment has launched Swachhta Udyami Yojana. This scheme aims at two objectives, viz. cleanliness and providing a livelihood to Safai Karamcharis (Cleaners) and liberated Manual Scavengers. This is achieved through financial assistance for Constructing, Operating and Maintaining the Pay and Use Community Toilets and Procurement and Operation of Sanitation related Vehicles. Swachhta Udyami Yojana is part of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, a nationwide campaign in India to promote cleanliness by providing the necessary infrastructure in cities, towns and rural areas. NSKFDC provides the funds for the scheme on the condition of loans through the banks mentioned in the guidelines of NSKFDC. The loan provided by the NSKFDC covers 90% of the project cost and the remaining 10% covered by the State government or beneficiary.

Goal of Swachhta Udyami Yojana

The goal of the scheme is to facilitate a decent livelihood to Safai Karamcharis and liberated Manual Scavengers through financial assistance by involving them in Construction, Operation and Maintenance of Pay and Use Community Toilets and Procurement and Operation of Sanitation related Vehicles.

Objectives of Swachhta Udyami Yojana

The Swachhta Udyami Yojana has a twin objective of cleanliness and providing a livelihood to Safai Karamcharis and liberated Manual Scavengers

Objectives of Construction, Operation and Maintenance of Pay and Use Community Toilets in Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Mode

To provide easy accessibility to community latrines for the households (who don’t have access to such facilities in their houses)
To provide easy accessibility for the floating population in public places with high footfall, e.g. bus stands, railway stations, markets etc.
To ensure proper maintenance of the facilities created by the entrepreneurs
To prevent the necessity of manual scavenging

Objectives of Procurement and Operation of Sanitation related Vehicles

To provide the required infrastructure for tapping the underutilised potential
Creating facilities for collection of garbage from the source
Creating employment opportunities for the Safai Karamcharis or manual scavengers

Eligibility Criteria

Pay and use in PPP mode

- The individual beneficiaries and the dependents or self-help groups in collaboration with a reputed organization
- The scheme should process through State Channelising Agencies (SCAs) nominated by the State Government/Union Territory Administrations and Regional Rural Banks/Nationalised banks
- An organisation that can provide proof of bank guarantee or letter of assurance from the Social Welfare Department of the concerned state

Sanitation-related Vehicles

- A Company that can provide financial assistance and required infrastructure for tapping the underutilised potential with a target group of manual scavengers or Safai Karamcharis
- The scheme should process through State Channelising Agencies (SCAs) nominated by the State Government/Union Territory Administrations and Regional Rural Banks/Nationalised banks
- An organisation that can provide proof of bank guarantee or letter of assurance from the Social Welfare Department of the concerned state

Financial Assistance for the Scheme

S.No	Scheme	Loan Amount	Repayment period
1	Pay and use in PPP mode	Up to Rs.25 lakhs for setting up of a unit of 10 seated toilet	Up to ten years
2	Sanitation-related Vehicles	Up to Rs.15 lakhs	Up to ten years

Rate of Interest

The interest rate for Pay and use in PPP mode and Sanitation related Vehicles scheme is 4% per annum. NSKFDC rebates 1% of the interest rate for women beneficiaries and 0.5% for repayments on time for both Pay and use in PPP mode and Sanitation related Vehicles schemes.

Moratorium Period for the Scheme

NSKFDC provides an option to postpone the repayment for a duration of six months (including the implementation period of six months) for both Pay and use in PPP mode and Sanitation related Vehicles schemes.

Subsidy for the Scheme

NSKFDC promotes the scheme and assists the entrepreneurs financially by providing subsidies in both Pay and use in PPP mode and Sanitation related Vehicles schemes. NSKFDC provides a maximum subsidy of Rs.3.25 lakhs.

Eligibility for Subsidy

The manual scavengers must be identified in accordance with the “Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers, and their Rehabilitation Act, 2013" as the subsidy is payable under the Self Employment Scheme for Rehabilitation of Manual Scavengers (SRMS).

Training for the Beneficiaries

To improve the skill set of the beneficiaries, NSKFDC provides skill development training for the beneficiaries to function with ease and to meet the goal of the scheme. NSKFDC also provides a stipend for the beneficiaries.

Application Procedure

Step 1: The beneficiaries should check if the project proposal meets the required criteria for applying this scheme

Step 2: The beneficiaries should apply for the loan by submitting the application letter and project proposal through the following channels in the district office of:

- State Channelising Agencies (SCAs)
- National Safai Karamcharis Finance & Development Corporation (NSKFDC)
- Branches of Regional Rural Banks (RRBs)
- Nationalised Banks

For a detailed list of channelling agencies, click here.

Step 3: The SCAs or NSKFDC or RRBs or Nationalised Banks forwards the application letter to the Head Office

Step 4: The SCAs or NSKFDC or RRBs or Nationalised Banks sends the appraised project proposal to the NSKFDC along with their recommendations after checking the viability of the project

Step 5: The Project Appraisal Committee of NSKFDC analyses the project proposal and forwards to the Board of Directors for approval

Step 6: The Board of Directors of NSKFDC provides the Letter of Intent after the approval of the project

Step 7: The beneficiaries sign the loan agreement and provide other necessary documents if any

Step 8: The NSKFDC releases the funds through SCAs or NSKFDC or RRBs or Nationalised Banks as per the guidelines of Lending Policies & Guidelines (LPG) of NSKFDC.

Registration Process

The beneficiaries can apply for the scheme by submitting the application letter and project proposal through the following channels in the district office of: