PM Street Vendor’s AtmaNirbhar Nidhi (PM SVANidhi)

The scheme "PM Street Vendor’s AtmaNirbhar Nidhi (PM SVANidhi)" by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, Government of India aims to formalize street vendors and enhance their economic opportunities through providing collateral-free working capital loans, interest subsidy, and digital transaction incentives to street vendors. It was launched on 1st June 2020 as a central sector scheme. The scheme supports vendors in restarting and expanding their businesses. It also promotes digital payments to increase financial inclusion. Street vendors include hawkers, thelewala, rehriwala, and others engaged in small-scale vending activities. The scheme aims to formalize the street vendors and open up new opportunities for this sector to move up the economic ladder. Street vendors represent a very important constituent of the urban informal economy and play a significant role in ensuring availability of the goods and services at affordable rates at the doorstep of the city dwellers. They are known as vendors, hawkers, thelewala, rehriwala, theliphadwala, etc. in different areas/ contexts. The goods supplied by them include vegetables, fruits, ready-to-eat street food, tea, pakodas, bread, eggs, textile, apparel, footwear, artisan products, books/ stationary, etc. The services include barber shops, cobblers, pan shops, laundry services, etc.