Kalpataru Scheme

What is the Kalpataru Scheme in Assam?

Kalpataru Scheme is a self-employment programme of the Government of Assam, introduced in 2003-04 and redesigned in 2007-08 with three components and wider coverage. The scheme's own stated aim is to provide unemployed youth a source of income generation through self-employment across the agriculture, industry and service sectors.

Kalpataru, the name is that of the wish-fulfilling tree of Indian tradition, was framed around a specific gap. Assam produces far more educated young people each year than the formal job market absorbs, and many of them register at an employment exchange and wait. A young person in that position who wants to run a poultry shed, a tailoring unit or a small service business needs a first tranche of capital that no bank will advance to someone with no collateral and no turnover record. Kalpataru puts that first tranche in place.

In its original form the scheme was confined to persons below the poverty line, with unit cost fixed between Rs 7,000 and Rs 25,000 and a 20 per cent beneficiary contribution. The 2007-08 redesign broadened it into three components and lifted the ceiling to Rs 75,000.

The Directorate of Employment and Craftsmen Training and the district Employment Exchanges are the practical point of contact for applicants. In the modified design, the Planning and Development Department handled Components I and II, and the Industries and Commerce Department, through District Industries and Commerce Centres, handled Component III.

How much does the Kalpataru Scheme give?

Two features of this structure matter in practice.

First, Component I asks for nothing from the beneficiary. It is designed for the poorest applicants, whose family income is the lowest, and who cannot put up even a fifth of a small unit cost. Published descriptions place the Component I family income threshold at below Rs 30,000 a year and Component II at below Rs 60,000 a year.

Second, the 20 per cent contribution on the larger components is not a penalty but a viability test. A youth who can arrange one-fifth of a Rs 60,000 unit cost, whether from savings or a bank loan, is more likely to run the venture than one who cannot.

Assistance is released to the beneficiary's own bank account.

Who is eligible for the Kalpataru Scheme?

You can apply if:

• You are a resident of Assam.
• You are between 18 and 35 years of age.
• You are unemployed and registered as a job seeker with the district employment exchange or employment bank.
• You are an educated applicant. Published descriptions of the scheme variously specify a graduate qualification and, more broadly, educated unemployed status, so confirm the qualification bar for the current round at your district Employment Exchange.
• Your family income is within the ceiling for the component you are applying under. Published thresholds place Component I below Rs 30,000 a year and Component II below Rs 60,000 a year, with an overall family income limit described as under Rs 3 lakh a year in later material.
• You propose a genuine self-employment activity in agriculture, industry or services.

You are not eligible and cannot apply if:

• You are below 18 or above 35 years of age.
• You are already employed, in government or private service.
• You have already received a government loan or assistance from another source for the same purpose. This exclusion is central to the scheme.
• You are not registered with an employment exchange.
• Your family income exceeds the ceiling for the component.
• You are not a resident of Assam.

What documents are required?

How to apply for the Kalpataru Scheme

1. Register with your district Employment Exchange if you have not already done so, and keep the registration card. Registered job-seeker status is the foundation of the application.
2. Check whether a round is open. Kalpataru is sanctioned in district rounds rather than running continuously, so ask at the Employment Exchange or the Deputy Commissioner's office whether applications are currently being received.
3. Collect the application form from the district Employment Exchange or the Deputy Commissioner's office. Several district portals have also published the Kalpataru application form for download.
4. Decide your component. Match your family income and the capital your proposed venture needs against Component I, II or III, and be ready to arrange the 20 per cent contribution for the two larger components.
5. Fill the form and attach documents, registration card, domicile certificate, educational certificates, age proof, income certificate, identity proof, bank passbook copy and, for Component III, a short project note.
6. Submit the application at the office indicated for your component. Components I and II are screened through the Deputy Commissioner's office; Component III is routed through the District Industries and Commerce Centre. Take a dated acknowledgement.
7. Attend verification if called, and be ready to show originals.
8. Await the district selection committee. Selection for all three components is made at district level by a committee chaired by the Deputy Commissioner. Approved assistance is credited to your bank account.

How do I check my application status?

There is no dedicated public status portal for Kalpataru. Follow up in person with:

• The district Employment Exchange where you registered and applied
• The Deputy Commissioner's office for Components I and II
• The District Industries and Commerce Centre for Component III

Carry your acknowledgement and your Employment Exchange registration number. The district development departments and a district-level committee also handle technical support and monitoring after assistance is released, so the same offices can help if the venture runs into difficulty later.

Why Kalpataru applications get rejected

• Age outside the 18 to 35 band.
• No Employment Exchange registration, or a lapsed registration.
• Family income above the component ceiling, or an income certificate from an authority the district does not accept.
• Prior government loan or assistance already availed for the same purpose.
• Applicant already employed, which defeats the scheme's purpose.
• Component III contribution not arranged, since 20 per cent is a condition rather than a preference.
• Bank account not active or not in the applicant's own name, which stops the transfer even after selection.

How does Kalpataru compare with other Assam self-employment schemes?

Kalpataru is the oldest of the state's self-employment schemes and the smallest in ticket size. A youth in Assam today typically has more than one option:

• Kalpataru — up to Rs 75,000, tiered by family income, selected by a district committee under the Deputy Commissioner, routed through the employment machinery.
• SVAYEM (Swami Vivekananda Assam Youth Empowerment Scheme): Rs 50,000 seed capital per person for applicants below 40 who have passed matriculation, run through the Industries and Commerce Department.
• PMEGP, a central credit-linked scheme where the bank sanctions 95 per cent of a project up to Rs 50 lakh in manufacturing or Rs 20 lakh in services, with subsidy at 25 per cent urban and 35 per cent rural.

Because Kalpataru is a legacy scheme running alongside these newer programmes, its current round, current ceilings and current income thresholds should be confirmed at the district Employment Exchange before an application is prepared.

Help and grievance redressal

• District Employment Exchange in your district; first point of contact for registration, forms and status.
• Deputy Commissioner's office of your district, which chairs the selection committee.
• District Industries and Commerce Centre for Component III.
• Directorate of Employment and Craftsmen Training, Government of Assam, at dect.assam.gov.in.

No fee is payable for applying under Kalpataru, and assistance reaches the beneficiary only by bank transfer. Any demand for money to secure selection should be reported in writing to the Deputy Commissioner.