Boneej Scheme

What is the Boneej scheme?

Boneej is a special grant scheme of the Industries & Commerce Department, Government of Assam, meant to assist the rural industries of the state. It was announced by the Finance Minister of Assam in the Budget speech of 26 July 2016, and the operational guidelines published by the department set out the objective as providing a special grant for rural industrial enterprises in the traditional and micro sector in Assam.

Boneej pays a one-time grant of Rs 25,000 to a qualifying unit. According to the operational guidelines, the grant is available only to industries located in rural areas and only where the annual turnover is less than Rs 5 lakh. The guidelines are specific about how the money is to be spent: the amount "shall be utilized by the units for procurement of machinery / raw materials, as the case may be." Boneej is therefore a working-capital and equipment top-up for a small rural producer, not a start-up grant and not a subsidy on a bank loan.

The name is often transliterated as Boneej Yojana in local usage. The scheme's district-wise targets were originally fixed on the basis of the rural population recorded in the 2011 Census, and the total outlay set out in the guidelines for the first cycle was Rs 7.90 crore across the districts, which at Rs 25,000 per unit works out to roughly 3,160 beneficiaries.

Which rural industries does Boneej cover?

The operational guidelines name the rural industries of Assam that the scheme is built around:

• Brass metal and bell metal work
• Cane and bamboo products
• Jute craft and water hyacinth craft
• Sital pati (traditional mat weaving)
• Gold and silver smithy (jewellery)
• Pottery and terracotta
• Blacksmithy
• Wood carving
• Fireworks
• Musical instruments
• Japi making
• Musk
• Bag making and folder making
• Decorative wax-base candles
• Food products such as bakery items, papad, noodles, traditional food, chutney and fruit juice
• Bamboo incense sticks
• Dhup and agarbatti

Who is eligible for the Boneej scheme?

You can apply if your unit meets all of these:

• The industry is located in a rural area of Assam.
• The industry is an existing one, in continuous operation for a minimum of the last two years. A newly started unit does not qualify.
• The unit has its own work shed for production and processing.
• The applicant's age is not less than 18 years and not more than 50 years.
• The unit has availed a term loan or working capital loan of at least Rs 1 lakh. This is the condition most applicants overlook, Boneej is designed to top up a unit that has already taken institutional credit.
• The unit's annual turnover is less than Rs 5 lakh.

The guidelines add explicitly that there is no bar of educational qualification, so an unlettered artisan running a registered unit is as eligible as a graduate.

You cannot apply, or are not eligible, if:

• Your unit is located in an urban area. Boneej is a rural-only scheme.
• Your unit is within the jurisdiction of the Karbi Anglong Autonomous District Council, the North Cachar Hills Autonomous District Council or the Bodoland Territorial Autonomous Districts. The guidelines exclude these areas from the area of implementation.
• Your unit has been running for less than two years.
• You do not have your own work shed and work out of rented or shared premises without a dedicated production space.
• You are under 18 or over 50 years of age.
• Your unit has not taken a term loan or working capital loan of at least Rs 1 lakh.
• Your annual turnover is Rs 5 lakh or more.

What documents are required for Boneej?

The check list annexed to Form A in the operational guidelines is short and specific:

Form A itself asks for the name and full address of the applicant with mobile number and email, father's or husband's name, the district and block, the address of the factory or shop, community status, the name of the rural industry being operated, the date of starting commercial production, how the grant amount will be used in the industry, registration details, training details, and the approximate annual turnover of the unit. The form ends with a declaration that the entire amount shall be refunded if any information is found to be incorrect or misrepresented.

How to apply for the Boneej scheme

1. Obtain Form A, the prescribed application form for Boneej, from the District Industries & Commerce Centre (DICC) of your district, or from the Boneej guidelines PDF on industries.assam.gov.in.
2. Fill in Form A completely: personal details, factory or shop address, name of the rural industry, date of starting commercial production, planned use of the grant, registration number and date, annual turnover, and bank branch, account number and IFSC code.
3. Attach the check-list documents, passport photograph, copy of industry registration, identity proof, address proof, first page of the bank passbook, and, where applicable, the caste certificate and training certificate.
4. Submit the application to the General Manager, District Industries & Commerce Centre of your district. There is no fee for submission.
5. Cooperate with the scrutiny. On receipt of the application the DICC examines it and, if necessary, carries out a physical verification of the unit.
6. Wait for the District Level Committee decision. After scrutiny the proposal is placed before the District Level Committee for approval.
7. Receive the grant. Once the DLC approves, the statement with the beneficiary's name, quantum of assistance, bank name and account details goes to the Commissionerate of Industries & Commerce for allotment of funds, and the money reaches the DICC or is transferred directly to the beneficiary's bank account.

Who decides, the District Level Committee

Boneej selection is made by a District Level Committee (DLC) constituted under the scheme, composed as follows:

The committee meets as and when necessary, examines applications, and approves the list of beneficiaries. The guidelines also require the Member Secretary to circulate the final list of selected beneficiaries to the Member of Legislative Assembly of the district for information, a transparency step that makes the selection list a matter of record.

A district-wise target is fixed by the Commissionerate of Industries & Commerce, Assam, on the basis of the rural population in each district and communicated to the concerned DICC. That is why a complete and eligible application can still be held over: the district's target for the year may already be exhausted.

What happens after the grant is released

The DICC must submit the utilisation certificate within 30 days from the date of receipt of funds. For the beneficiary, the practical consequence is that the money is expected to be spent on machinery or raw materials promptly and that documentary proof of that spending will be asked for. The declaration in Form A makes the refund liability explicit — if the information furnished turns out to be incorrect or misrepresented, the entire amount is refundable.

Why Boneej applications get rejected

• Unit less than two years old. Continuous operation for a minimum of two years is a hard condition.
• No own work shed. The guidelines require the unit to have its own shed for production and process.
• No term loan or working capital loan of Rs 1 lakh or more. This is the most commonly missed criterion.
• Turnover of Rs 5 lakh or above, which puts the unit outside the target group.
• Applicant over 50 or under 18.
• Unit located in an excluded autonomous council area: Karbi Anglong, North Cachar Hills or the Bodoland Territorial Autonomous Districts.
• Incomplete check list, particularly a missing industry registration copy or an illegible bank passbook page.

Key dates and status

Boneej was announced in the Assam Budget speech of 26 July 2016 and the first district-wise targets were framed for 2016-17 using 2011 Census rural population figures. The scheme guidelines contain no closing date, and applications are taken against the district target for the year. The Industries and Commerce Department has reserved the right to amend or withdraw any provision of the scheme as necessary, so intending applicants should confirm the current year's target and terms with their DICC before applying.

Help and grievance route

• General Manager, District Industries & Commerce Centre of your district. The first point of contact for the application and for its status.
• Additional Director (DICC), Office of the Commissioner of Industries & Commerce, Udyog Bhawan, Bamunimaidam, Guwahati 781021, Assam. The state-level office named in the Boneej guidelines.
• Industries & Commerce Department, Government of Assam: industries.assam.gov.in, where the Boneej operational guidelines PDF is published.

Applying for Boneej is free. No agent can charge you to have a Boneej application accepted or approved, and the approval is a committee decision chaired by the Deputy Commissioner of your district.