Panvel: Over 1700 street vendors monetary benefits under PM's Road Vendor Self-Reliance Fund scheme

More than 1700 street vendors under the Panvel Municipal Corporation (PMC) have received monetary support under the Prime Minister's Road Vendor Self-Reliance Fund scheme. Under the scheme, the bank disburses Rs 10,000 as the first loan and Rs 20,000 as the second loan for the revival of street vendor's businesses.

Under the PMC area, there are a total of 1,769 beneficiaries who received the first loan of Rs 10,000 and 117 received the second loan of Rs 20,000.

The central government has instructed the street vendors in the city to implement a plan to revive their business with the help of the monetary fund received by them. The scheme is being implemented through the local body.

A senior PMC official said that street vendors are a vital component of the informal civic economy. “The availability of goods and services at affordable rates plays a role in ensuring the economic strength of the city dwellers. They are known in various parts as Pathvikreta, Feriwala, Thelewala, Rehriwala, Theliphadwala etc,” said the official.

Due to the pandemic, the livelihoods of street vendors were adversely affected. Most of the time, they were selling the street items for less capital, and whatever capital they had, they were less likely to be left in the balance sheet. The objective of the scheme is to encourage regular repayments and to promote digital transactions.