Promotion of Women in Innovative Enterprises Programme (PWIEP)

Entrepreneurs usually require financial assistance of some kind to launch their ventures – be it a formal bank loan or money from a savings account. Women in developing nations have little access to funds, due to the fact that they are concentrated in poor rural communities with few opportunities to borrow money. Women entrepreneurs suffer from inadequate financial resources and working capital compounded with lack of access to external funds due to their inability to provide tangible security. Very few women have the tangible property in hand.

Therefore, to provide a boost to aspiring women entrepreneurs and as part of the economic empowerment process for women in the State, the Department is implementing a scheme called “Promotion of Women in Innovative Enterprises Programme”. This scheme targets women entrepreneurs who are involved in innovative and novel enterprises and are in need of funding to develop and expand their trades. A major objective of the scheme would be not just to further the economic position of the beneficiaries but also to set them as role models for other women to emulate.

Under this scheme, interest-free loan up to Rs. 5.00 lakh is being extended to innovative women entrepreneurs through the Directorate of Women Resource Development after due screening by the Directorate and final selection by the Department Selection Committee.

Objectives of the project

• Strengthening women’s social participation in the new market economy in order to ensure their access to new income through own business creation.
• Developing and encouraging the adoption and customization of models to provide sufficient products of these novel trades to boost the local industry and economy.

Criteria:

• Age of the entrepreneur must be within 25 and 50 years;
• Applicant should already be in established business/enterprise;
• Physical and Mental Health of Applicant (to be certified by competent medical officer);
• Only self-employed women entrepreneurs may apply for the loan.

Procedure for Applying:

• Applications shall be invited through Advertisement in print media;
• Eligible women entrepreneurs wishing to avail loan under this scheme should submit a written application, along with three passport size colour photos, to the Director, Department of Women Resource Development, Nagaland, Kohima;

List of Documents to be submitted by the Applicant

a. Proof of Identity (Any one of the following documents)

• Ration Card
• Aadhar Card
• Valid Pass Port
• Driving License

b. Trade License

c. Birth Certificate

d. Statement of bank account for last six months

e. Statement of the Guarantor (format enclosed)

f. Two passport size photographs of Guarantor

* District Women Development Programme Monitoring Committee (DWDPMC) is the Committee set up in all districts under the Chairpersonship of the Deputy Commissioner with representatives of the Department’s PNGOs as members for monitoring and strengthening of district level activities and programmes of the Department.

Applications shall summarily be rejected in case of failure to produce any of the above documents.

Screening & Selection Process:

• After scrutiny of the applications received, eligible candidates shall be called for interview on a date fixed by the Directorate.
• State Level Selection Committee set up by the Government comprises the following:

1. Secretary (Women Resource Development Dept.) : Chairperson
2. Director (Women Resource Development Dept.) : Member-Secretary
3. All Member Secretaries, DWDPMC : Member

• The Committee will study the viability of selected projects and approve/sanction amount as deemed fit.

Loan Disbursement & Recovery:

• Loan will be disbursed through the Directorate of Women Resource Development;
• A moratorium period of 3 months shall be provided w.e.f. the date of availing the loan, after which, the loan shall be recovered in 36 equal monthly installments;
• The monthly repayment amount shall be deposited into a current bank account of the Department specifically opened for this scheme: Promotion of Women in Innovative Enterprises; A/C No. 32961989208; SBI Kohima Main Branch.

Maintenance of Records:

• All entrepreneurs availing the loan must maintain correct and updated records as per the prescribed formats;
• Half-Yearly Progress Reports must be submitted to the Directorate with all necessary details along with recent photographs of the activity being undertaken by 15^th June and 15^th December annually.

Monitoring of Activities:

• Monitoring of the various enterprises under this scheme shall periodically be carried out by officials of the Department;
• The concerned official shall maintain records of activities under this scheme which must register the progress; strengths; weaknesses; area where intervention is needed; suggestions for overcoming obstacles/difficulties etc.

Re-loaning of Recovered Amount:

• The corpus generated by the recovered loan shall be re-loaned to other deserving entrepreneurs from time to time under the same modality and terms and conditions;
• Fresh applications will be invited as and when fund is made available.

Terms and Conditions

1. The Department reserves the right to inspect the sanctioned projects/enterprises and record books from time to time;
2. The money thus availed shall not be utilized for any other purpose other than that as approved and sanctioned by the Department;
3. A Regular Government Employee shall stand as Guarantor against the loan to be availed by the applicant.
4. To qualify as Guarantor, the concerned person must be holding a regular government post with minimum Pay Band of Rs. 5200/- P.M.
5. Penalty shall be imposed against the Guarantor for late payment/non-payment of monthly installments and for other discrepancies detected (See Guarantor’s Declaration);
6. Beneficiaries shall be obliged to attend training programmes on entrepreneurship organized by the Department from time to time;
7. Beneficiaries shall render their services as tutors/trainers on their respective enterprise whenever required by the Department.

PENALTY GUIDELINES

In the case that the applicant fails to fulfill the repayment schedule, penalty shall be deducted from the salary of the concerned guarantor;

For this purpose, the A.H.O.D/H.O.D/D.D.O of the establishment, under which the guarantor is employed, shall authorize the concerned bank to deduct from the salary of the guarantor the penalty amount (i.e. the due monthly installment of the loan of the beneficiary);

A copy of the Authorization Letter shall be endorsed to the Director, Department of Women Development, Nagaland, Kohima;

The penalty thus realized by the bank shall be deposited into a bank account of the Department of Women Development which shall be opened specifically for this scheme.

*It is subjected to fund availability of the Department, which are advertised in the local media from time to time.