SRINAGAR: Jammu and Kashmir has emerged as one of the best-performing regions under the Prime Minister’s Employment Generation Programme (PMEGP), with 66,436 beneficiaries receiving financial assistance and Rs 1,384.40 crore disbursed as margin money subsidy over the last five financial years, the Union Government informed Parliament.
According to a written reply by Minister of State for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Shobha Karandlaje in the Lok Sabha, banks in Jammu and Kashmir received 1,53,297 PMEGP applications between 2021-22 and 2025-26, of which 98,982 were sanctioned. The sanctioned projects led to financial assistance for 66,436 beneficiaries, placing the Union Territory among the top performers in the country.
The data shows that only Uttar Pradesh received a higher margin money subsidy than Jammu and Kashmir during the period. Uttar Pradesh recorded 48,663 beneficiaries with Rs 1,748.27 crore in subsidy, while Jammu and Kashmir assisted a significantly higher number of beneficiaries despite receiving a lower subsidy amount.
Nationally, the PMEGP supported 1,90,156 manufacturing units, generating sustainable employment for about 17.11 lakh people, while 2,13,550 service and trading units were assisted, creating employment for nearly 19.22 lakh persons during the last five years.
The Ministry said the government has introduced several measures to improve implementation of the scheme, particularly in aspirational, rural and tribal areas. These include higher subsidy rates and lower beneficiary contribution for special category applicants, PMEGP helpdesks in State offices, over 1,000 model project reports on the PMEGP portal, collateral-free bank loans up to Rs 20 lakh in line with RBI guidelines, integration of the PMEGP portal with the Jan Samarth platform, regular bankers’ review meetings, and extensive awareness and outreach programmes across States and Union Territories.
The PMEGP is a flagship credit-linked subsidy scheme aimed at promoting self-employment through the establishment of micro-enterprises in the manufacturing and service sectors.
