Dattopant Thengadi Artisan Interest Subsidy Scheme

What is the Dattopant Thengadi Artisan Interest Subsidy Scheme?

Dattopant Thengadi Artisan Interest Subsidy Scheme is a credit-support scheme of the Government of Gujarat, run by the Commissioner of Cottage and Rural Industries under the Industries and Mines Department. The scheme puts low-cost working capital and machinery finance in the hands of registered handloom and handicraft artisans in both urban and rural Gujarat, so that a weaver, embroiderer, potter, wood carver or metal craftsperson can buy raw material and tools without going to a moneylender.

The scheme works through banks rather than as a direct grant. The artisan takes a bank loan of up to Rs 1,00,000; the state then pays a 7 per cent interest subsidy and a margin money subsidy of 20 to 25 per cent, both directly into the artisan's account. The scheme is named after Dattopant Thengadi, the trade union and labour organiser, and is sometimes written as the Dattopant Thengadi Karigar Vyaj Sahay Yojana.

What benefits does the scheme give?

Loan limit. A maximum credit limit of Rs 1,00,000 is available, and it can be taken for machinery, for working capital, or for a combination of both. The funds cover raw materials, equipment, tools and machinery used in the craft.

Margin money subsidy.

• 20 per cent of the loan amount for General category male beneficiaries.
• 25 per cent of the loan amount for reserved categories, women, and persons with 40 per cent or more disability.
• Applicable on loans up to Rs 1,00,000, with a maximum validity of 3 years.

Interest subsidy.

• 7 per cent interest subsidy on the loan.
• Credited half-yearly to the beneficiary's bank account.
• Maximum validity 3 years.

Repeat benefit. Where the artisan keeps up regular repayment, the benefit may be extended up to three additional times. That makes the scheme a rolling credit line for a working artisan rather than a one-shot grant.

Who is eligible for the Dattopant Thengadi artisan scheme?

You can take the benefit if:

• You are above 18 years of age.
• You have skills in handloom or handicraft work.
• You hold an identity card issued by the Development Commissioner (Handloom), the Development Commissioner (Handicrafts) or Indext-C, or a provisional certificate from the General Manager of your District Industries Centre.
• You are registered as an artisan with Indext-C under the Cottage and Rural Industries setup.
• You work in Gujarat, in either an urban or a rural location. The scheme covers both.
• You are an artisan who is physically handicapped or blind: such artisans are expressly covered, and qualify for the higher 25 per cent margin money rate under the disability head at 40 per cent or more disability.

You are not eligible if:

• You are under 18 years of age.
• You have no artisan registration and no provisional certificate. The identity card is the gateway document; without it the District Industries Centre cannot process the file.
• Your trade is outside handloom and handicraft. General trading, retail and service businesses are served by other Gujarat schemes such as the cottage industry manav kalyan and self-employment schemes, not by this one.
• Your bank refuses the loan on its own credit norms. The subsidy attaches to a sanctioned loan, so a rejected loan means no subsidy.

What documents are required?

How to apply for the Dattopant Thengadi Artisan Interest Subsidy Scheme

1. Download and print the prescribed application form from the Commissioner of Cottage and Rural Industries website, cottage.gujarat.gov.in. The form is also available at the District Industries Centre.
2. Fill the form in duplicate, entering your personal details, craft and business details, the loan amount sought and how it will be used.
3. Affix two passport-size photographs, one on each copy.
4. Attach self-certified copies of the artisan identity card or provisional certificate, election card or Aadhaar, birth or school leaving certificate, machinery quotation with TIN or VAT number, business place proof and ration card.
5. Submit the complete set at your District Industries Centre and take an acknowledgement.
6. The DIC forwards the case to the lending bank, which appraises, sanctions and disburses the loan under its own norms.
7. After disbursement, submit the bank certificate (Annexure A) and the subsidy claim forms (Annexure B) with your loan account number, branch IFSC code, bank TAN, bank account number and Aadhaar number.
8. The bank sends the subsidy claim to the Commissioner or the DIC, and the margin money and interest subsidy are credited directly to your bank account, the interest component half-yearly.

How to check your application and subsidy status

1. Go back to the District Industries Centre where you filed, quote the acknowledgement, and ask which stage the file is at — DIC scrutiny, bank appraisal or subsidy claim.
2. Check your bank statement every six months for the interest subsidy credit; it arrives half-yearly, not monthly.
3. Ask your bank branch whether Annexure A and the Annexure B claim forms have actually been sent onward. In practice this is where files stall most often.

Why artisan subsidy claims get rejected or delayed

• No artisan identity card and no provisional certificate. Fix this first at the DIC; nothing else moves until it exists.
• Quotation without a TIN or VAT number. Ask the supplier for a proper quotation on letterhead with the tax registration printed.
• Application filed in a single copy. The scheme requires duplicate copies, both bearing a photograph.
• Bank has not filed the subsidy claim. The artisan cannot claim the subsidy directly; the branch has to send Annexure A and B. Follow up with the branch manager in writing.
• Irregular repayment, which stops both the running interest subsidy and any extension of the benefit.
• Wrong or inactive bank account details, so the credit fails.
• Business place proof missing for artisans working from home. A house tax receipt in a family member's name usually needs a supporting declaration.

Where to get help

• District Industries Centre (DIC) in your district, the filing and follow-up point for this scheme.
• Commissioner of Cottage and Rural Industries, Gandhinagar; cottage.gujarat.gov.in, which hosts the application form, the bank certificate format, the interest subsidy form and the subsidy claim form.
• Indext-C, for artisan registration and the artisan identity card.

The application form and the scheme benefit are free. No agent's fee is payable to file the form or to obtain the subsidy, and both the margin money and the interest subsidy reach you only through your own bank account.