Union Budget 2024: 30 Crore Mudra Loans Given To Women Entrepreneurs, Says Sitharaman

Presenting the Union Budget 2024 on Thursday, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman highlighted the significant impact of the Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana, informing that 43 crore Mudra loans totaling INR 22.5 crore have been sanctioned, with 30 crore loans specifically benefiting women entrepreneurs. Sitharaman emphasized the role of the PM Mudra Yojana in supporting the entrepreneurial aspirations of the youth, alongside the Fund of Funds, Startup India, and Startup Credit Guarantee Schemes.

As of March 2023, Mudra portal data indicated that 6.23 crore loans amounting to INR 4.56 lakh crore were sanctioned, of which INR 4.50 lakh crore had been disbursed. In the current fiscal year, as of January 26, 2024, 4.9 crore loans involving INR 3.90 lakh crore were sanctioned, with INR 3.83 lakh crore disbursed.

Asset Quality Analysis

Discussing asset quality, Minister of State in the Finance Ministry, Bhagwat Karad, reported in the Rajya Sabha on December 19 that the total non-performing assets (NPAs) as a percentage of credit disbursed under the Mudra scheme stood at 2.68 per cent as of June 2023, a slight increase from 2.62 per cent as of March 2023 but a decrease from 3.17 per cent in March 2022. NPAs represent loans overdue for more than 90 days.

Mudra Scheme Overview

Launched in 2015, the Mudra scheme aims to refinance last-mile financiers supporting micro and small businesses across various sectors, including manufacturing, trading, services, and agri-allied activities. The scheme categorizes credit across three stages: Shishu, Kishor, and Tarun, offering financial limits up to INR 50,000; INR 50,000 to INR 5 lakh; and INR 5 lakh to INR 10 lakh, respectively.

Meanwhile, recent data from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) revealed that banks invested INR 23.36 lakh crore under priority sector lending in MSMEs in November 2023, reflecting a 21.9 per cent increase from the INR 19.16 lakh crore deployed in November 2022. In October 2023, INR 23.15 lakh crore was deployed in MSMEs under priority sector lending. The amount deployed in November constituted 14.9 per cent of the INR 155 lakh crore non-food credit deployed by banks during the month, compared to 14.8 per cent of the INR 128 lakh crore non-food credit in November 2022.