One lakh street vendors identified for assistance

Aid rendered: More than 32,000 street vendors have received loans under the PM-SVANidhi scheme. File

Following the pandemic, the Greater Chennai Corporation has identified one lakh street vendors for assistance under various schemes.

“As per the PM Street Vendor’s AtmaNirbhar Nidhi (PM-SVANidhi) data, one lakh vendors have been identified for the the loan scheme in the 15 zones by the Greater Chennai Corporation,” said Corporation Deputy Commissioner (Revenue and Finance) Vishu Mahajan.

With respect to the PM-SVANidhi Scheme, the city is highest in the State and second across the country in terms of sanctions and disbursals. In the first phase, 27,195 vendors were identified and given identity cards. It is a five-year recurring cycle. Next phase of identifications will start next year.

Of the 1.04 lakh applications uploaded under the scheme, banks have sanctioned only 40,000 applications. More than 32,000 street vendors have received loans under the scheme. Over 27,000 applications have been returned by the banks, and Corporation officials are trying to help such vendors get loan assistance.