SRINAGAR: Jammu and Kashmir hosts 100 Van Dhan Vikas Kendras, covering 29,791 tribal beneficiaries and backed by Rs 1,457 lakh in sanctioned central funds, official parliamentary data shows.
The figures appear in a Ministry of Tribal Affairs reply to Parliament that outlines national and state programmes for tribal enterprise promotion. At the national level, TRIFED has sanctioned 4,125 Van Dhan Vikas Kendras associating some 1.23 million members, with Rs 61,212.7 lakh sanctioned since the scheme began; in Jammu and Kashmir specifically, 100 VDVKs account for nearly 30,000 beneficiaries and Rs 1,457 lakh in funds. TRIFED’s role is presented as twofold: enabling value addition of minor forest produce and providing market linkages through both online and offline platforms, festivals, exhibitions and trade fairs.
Credit support has also been scaled up. Data from the National Scheduled Tribes Finance and Development Corporation show that loans disbursed to tribal beneficiaries in Jammu and Kashmir totalled Rs 1,272.54 lakh to 535 beneficiaries in 2022–23, Rs 295.19 lakh to 106 beneficiaries in 2023–24 and Rs 1,102.49 lakh to 409 beneficiaries in 2024–25. The three-year sequence points to a sharp dip in 2023–24 followed by a strong recovery in 2024–25, raising the three-year total to Rs 2,670.22 lakh and 1,050 beneficiaries. These concessional loans support term projects, women entrepreneurs, SHGs and education loans as part of NSTFDC schemes listed in the parliamentary data.
The Ministry’s statement highlights several specialised NSTFDC instruments that affect Jammu and Kashmir entrepreneurs: a Term Loan Scheme covering up to 90 per cent of project cost, the Adivasi Mahila Sashaktikaran Yojana offering loans up to Rs 2 lakh at 4 per cent interest to tribal women, a Micro Credit Scheme for SHGs and the Adivasi Shiksha Rrinn Yojana for education loans up to Rs 10 lakh. In addition, a Venture Capital Fund for Scheduled Tribes has begun modestly, with Rs 8.41 lakh sanctioned in two cases to date. These instruments collectively aim to widen credit access and lower the cost of capital for tribal enterprises.
The reply also documents operational measures for market access and awareness. TRIFED is tasked with providing backward and forward linkages and marketing support for tribal crafts and food products; implementing agencies and central and state bodies run outreach via social media, seminars, radio, television and local melas to increase scheme uptake. The ministry notes additional central financing under the PM-JANMAN stream, by which 539 VDVKs have been sanctioned nationally, associating 45,924 members and Rs 2,298.05 lakh in funds — a complementary line that can reinforce Van Dhan clusters in states including Jammu and Kashmir.
