Stand-Up India: 2016 to 2025, and What’s Next

Stand-Up India was launched so that bank loans would reach Scheduled Caste (SC), Scheduled Tribe (ST) and women entrepreneurs. The government saw these groups as underserved by formal credit. So it gave every bank branch a lending target.

1.1 When and why did it start?

It started because the government wanted banks to reach underserved SC, ST and women entrepreneurs. The Ministry of Finance said the aim was to “leverage the institutional credit structure”. In plain words, banks were to be used to reach people they had not served well.

The Prime Minister announced the idea in his address to the nation on 15 August 2015. He called it “Start up India, Stand up India”. The scheme was launched on 5 April 2016 at Sector 62, Noida, together with a web portal.

At launch, the loans were for the non-farm sector only.

Memory hook: announced August 2015, launched 5 April 2016.

1.2 What did every bank branch have to do?

Each branch of a Scheduled Commercial Bank (SCB) had to fund at least one SC or ST borrower and one woman borrower. The PIB release of 2016 put it as “at least two such projects per bank branch”, one for each category.

The loan had to set up a greenfield enterprise. A greenfield enterprise is a brand-new business. It is not an existing one.

The scheme belongs to the Department of Financial Services (DFS) in the Ministry of Finance.

Common mistake: the target is per bank branch, not per bank. Most credit schemes only set who may borrow. This one set how many borrowers each branch must fund.

A borrower could take a loan of ₹10 lakh to ₹1 crore. The borrower had to be an SC, ST or woman entrepreneur starting a new business. The terms below come from the Department of Financial Services and the scheme portal.

2.1 What were the loan terms?

A borrower got one composite loan of ₹10 lakh to ₹1 crore, with up to 7 years to repay. The details are below.

• Size: a composite loan of ₹10 lakh to ₹1 crore. Composite means the term loan and the working capital come in one loan.
• Repayment: up to 7 years, including an 18-month moratorium. A moratorium is a break when repayment is paused.
• Margin money: “upto 15%”. Margin money is the part of the project cost that the borrower, not the bank, puts in.
• Own money: in any case the borrower must bring at least 10% of the project cost.
• Card: a RuPay debit card to draw the working capital.
• Use: greenfield projects in manufacturing, services, trading and activities allied to agriculture.

The loan was meant to cover 85% of the project cost. The borrower and linked government schemes were to meet the rest.

Common mistake: margin money is not a government grant. It is the borrower’s own share, which can be met with help from other eligible schemes.

2.2 Who could apply, and how?

An SC, ST or woman entrepreneur above 18 years could apply, if the business was new. Three rules mattered.

• The applicant had to be above 18 years of age.
• The applicant had to be an SC or ST entrepreneur, or a woman entrepreneur.
• A company or other non-individual enterprise needed an SC, ST or woman entrepreneur holding at least 51% of shares and control.

An applicant could use the Stand-Up Mitra portal (standupmitra.in). The portal guides people from training to filling in the loan form. Applications could also go through jansamarth.in.

Banks paid for the loans from their own funds. The government did not hand out loan money. It built two helping layers: a credit guarantee and a refinance window.

3.1 Did the government fund the loans?

No. A Lok Sabha reply of 20 July 2021 says the Government does not allocate funds for loans under the scheme. Banks lend by their own board-approved policies, commercial rules and Reserve Bank of India (RBI) guidelines.

3.2 What was the credit guarantee?

A credit guarantee is a promise to cover part of a bank’s loss if the borrower cannot repay. It makes banks more willing to lend to first-time borrowers.

At launch, the Ministry of Finance announced a corpus of ₹5,000 crore for credit guarantee through the National Credit Guarantee Trustee Company (NCGTC). The Government then put money into the Credit Guarantee Fund for Stand Up India (CGFSI).

• ₹500 crore in 2016-17.
• ₹500 crore in 2017-18.
• ₹100 crore in 2020-21.

3.3 What was the refinance window?

Refinance means a larger lender gives money to banks so that they can make these loans. For Stand-Up India, the window ran through the Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI). Its initial amount was ₹10,000 crore.

A Lok Sabha reply of 2016 said the loans would be “eligible for refinance and credit guarantee cover”.

Common mistake: the guarantee and the refinance window are two different things. One protects the bank against loss. The other gives the bank money to lend.

3.4 What help did borrowers get besides money?

Borrowers were promised handholding support. That means help with training before the loan, getting the loan, buying inputs and finding customers. The process was led by SIDBI. The offices of SIDBI and the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) were named Stand Up Connect Centres.

In 2021 the scheme was made easier to use and given more time. A Lok Sabha reply of 20 July 2021 lists the changes. They followed an announcement in the Budget Speech for 2021-22.

4.1 What changed?

Three rules changed: the time allowed, the margin money and the activities covered.

• The scheme was extended up to 2025.
• Margin money was cut from “upto 25%” to “upto 15%”.
• Activities allied to agriculture were added. At launch, the loans were only for the non-farm sector.

The reply said no other change was planned.

Memory hook: 2021 means less margin money, more activities, more time.

By 28 February 2025 the scheme had sanctioned about 2.67 lakh accounts worth ₹60,504 crore. Only ₹34,450 crore had actually been paid out by then.

5.1 What do the official totals show?

The official totals show a big gap between loans approved and money paid out. The Department of Financial Services gave them “as on 28.02.2025”, since launch.

• Accounts sanctioned: 2.67 lakh.
• Amount sanctioned: ₹60,504 crore.
• Amount disbursed: ₹34,450 crore.
• Women’s accounts: 1.99 lakh.

Sanctioned means the bank has approved the loan. Disbursed means the money has been paid out. The gap between the two is large.

5.2 How did the totals grow?

The totals grew steadily, but each one depends on its data date. Always read the date next to the number.

5.3 Which groups gained most?

Women gained most, in both accounts and amounts. A PIB factsheet compares November 2018 with November 2024.

• Women: accounts rose from 55,644 to 1,90,844. Sanctioned loans rose from ₹12,452.37 crore to ₹43,984.10 crore.
• SC: accounts rose from 9,399 to 46,248. Sanctioned loans rose from ₹1,826.21 crore to ₹9,747.11 crore.
• ST: accounts rose from 2,841 to 15,228. Sanctioned loans rose from ₹574.65 crore to ₹3,244.07 crore.

Women took the largest share. Of the 2.67 lakh accounts in February 2025, 1.99 lakh were women’s accounts.

The Department of Financial Services says the scheme ran “upto 31.03.2025, in line with the 15th Finance Commission”. So the end date came from the approval cycle. It was not a sudden closure.

6.1 What does the official page say?

It says the scheme ran up to 31 March 2025 and links this to the 15th Finance Commission. The page was last updated on 5 February 2026.

6.2 Was it a failure?

No. The Budget Speech of 2025-26 calls it “the successful Stand-Up India scheme”. It also says the next scheme will learn from it.

Common mistake: do not say the scheme was cancelled for poor results. The end date was set by its approval period.

The Union Budget 2025-26 announced a new scheme for first-time entrepreneurs. It is still being worked out. The official scheme page shows the proposal at the approval-preparation stage.

7.1 What did the Budget announce?

The Budget Speech of 1 February 2025 said a new scheme will be launched for 5 lakh women, SC and ST first-time entrepreneurs. It will give term loans up to ₹2 crore during the next 5 years.

The speech said the scheme “will incorporate lessons from the successful Stand-Up India scheme”. It also promised online training in entrepreneurship and managerial skills.

7.2 Where does the new scheme stand?

The Department of Financial Services page of 5 February 2026 says the Expenditure Finance Committee (EFC) note is “under preparation”. The EFC is the committee that examines large spending proposals before they are approved. The page adds that comments of the concerned ministries will be taken.

So, as of that page, the new scheme has been announced but not launched.

Exams ask what the scheme is for, how it is supported, and how it differs from similar schemes. The best proof is a real paper.

8.1 What did UPSC ask in 2016?

UPSC CSP 2016, Paper I, Question 26 gave two statements about Stand-Up India.

1. Its purpose is to promote entrepreneurship among SC/ST and women entrepreneurs. 2. It provides for refinance through SIDBI.

The answer is (c), Both 1 and 2. The first is the stated aim. The second is the refinance window from section 3.

8.2 What traps do questions set?

Questions mix up four things, so watch for each.

• One support layer, not two. The loans had a credit guarantee and a refinance window. Naming only one is a trap.
• Sanctioned versus disbursed. ₹60,504 crore was sanctioned. ₹34,450 crore was disbursed.
• Stand-Up India versus MUDRA. MUDRA began with loans up to ₹10 lakh for small businesses. Its Tarun Plus band now goes up to ₹20 lakh. Stand-Up India gave ₹10 lakh to ₹1 crore, only to SC, ST and women.
• End date. 31 March 2025 was a planned end, not a closure for failure.