Key Takeaways
- The ODOP scheme positions Uttar Pradesh as a hub for district‑specific products, driving exports.
- A historic Rs 50,000 crore loan package was released to boost MSME growth and self‑reliance.
- Yogi’s initiative links Vishwakarma Shram Samman with skill development for craftsmen and women.
Lucknow: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Saturday distributed loans worth Rs 50,000 crore to the entrepreneurs of the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) sector.
This distribution, timed with Vishwakarma Jayanti, made Uttar Pradesh the first state in the country to extend loans on such a large scale in a single go.
While participating in a programme to distribute tool kits and loans to MSME entrepreneurs organised at Lok Bhawan under the ‘Vishwakarma Shram Samman’ scheme, Yogi said that the aim of the double engine government is to make the youth, women, businessmen and entrepreneurs of the state self-reliant.
He said that the new UP of New India is being effectively implemented on the ground as per the vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. “In 2018, our government started the One District One Product (ODOP) scheme for the traditional enterprises of UP, which was an innovative initiative. The objective behind the scheme was not only to provide a platform for the talented youth of the state, but also to establish the state as an excellent destination for investment, in which it was successful,” he said.
Yogi emphasised that Prime Minister Modi has considered the ODOP scheme of UP as the foundation to realise the goals of Vocal for Local and Self-reliant India goals. “Today, within no time, the ODOP scheme of UP has become the scheme of the entire country,” he said.
Pointing out that no big enterprise or industry can be successful unless it has a good MSME cluster, he said, “UP is fortunate from this point of view as it has a huge base of MSME, which has given a new identity to the state. This scheme has played a big role in employment generation and increasing exports in UP.”
The CM asserted that despite the Covid pandemic, the credit and debit ratio of UP increased by 10 to 11 percent to 55-56 percent in the last 5 to 6 years. “We will increase it to 60 to 62 percent. We have to work further with this goal. For this, employment fairs will have to be organised on a large scale, training will have to be imparted and people will have to be connected with digital payments,” he said.
He said that the double engine government would extend full cooperation in enhancing the skills of craftsmen who are blessed by Lord Vishwakarma. It may be noted that the Yogi government is continuously working to make the youth, women, businessmen and small entrepreneurs of the state self-reliant.
In this direction, in the last six years, loans worth Rs 66,000 crore have been provided, of which Rs 16,000 crore was distributed to 1.90 lakh craftsmen, artisans and small entrepreneurs earlier and Rs 50,000 crore was disbursed on Saturday.
In the program, CM Yogi symbolically distributed tool kits to beneficiaries of Vishwakarma Shram Samman Yojana and ODOP Scheme. He also distributed loans to MSME entrepreneurs.
