Term Loan Scheme (LIDCOM, Maharashtra)

What is the LIDCOM Term Loan Scheme?

The Term Loan Scheme is a business finance scheme run by the Sant Rohidas Leather Industries and Charmakar Development Corporation Ltd (LIDCOM), a fully state-owned corporation under the Social Justice and Special Assistance Department, Government of Maharashtra. The scheme funds self-employment ventures of the Charmakar community: Dhor, Chambhar, Holar, Mochi and allied castes, with loans ranging from Rs 1,00,000 to Rs 5,00,000.

LIDCOM was established on 1 May 1974 with 100 per cent state government participation, and its head office is at 45, Veer Nariman Marg, Bombay Life Building, 5th floor, Fort, Mumbai 400 001. The Corporation's stated purpose is the economic upliftment of the Charmakar community, historically dependent on leather work, through credit, training and marketing support.

The Term Loan Scheme is a centrally refinanced product. According to LIDCOM, the National Scheduled Castes Finance and Development Corporation (NSFDC) sanctions the bulk of the project cost, while LIDCOM adds a cheaper seed loan and an outright subsidy. That layering is what makes the effective cost of borrowing far lower than a commercial business loan.

How the funding is structured

A borrower therefore puts in 5 per cent of the project cost from their own pocket, and the rest is arranged by the Corporation. On a Rs 2,00,000 project, that is a Rs 10,000 own contribution against a Rs 1,50,000 NSFDC loan and a Rs 40,000 seed loan, with a Rs 10,000 subsidy reducing the outstanding.

Who is eligible for the Term Loan Scheme?

You can apply if:

• You belong to the Charmakar community — Dhor, Chambhar, Holar, Mochi and allied castes recognised within it.
• You are a permanent resident of Maharashtra.
• You are aged between 18 and 50 years.
• Your annual income is below Rs 3,00,000, in rural or urban areas, per the limit LIDCOM states for this scheme.
• You hold a caste certificate and an income certificate issued by an authorised government officer.
• You have working knowledge of the business for which the loan is sought. LIDCOM states this explicitly, the Corporation expects a borrower to know the trade, not merely to have a proposal written for them.

You are not eligible and cannot apply if:

• You are outside the Charmakar community. LIDCOM's mandate is specific to it; other Scheduled Caste applicants are served by different Maharashtra corporations.
• You are under 18 or over 50.
• Your annual income exceeds Rs 3,00,000.
• You are not a permanent resident of Maharashtra.
• You cannot produce a caste certificate from an authorised officer. A community claim without a certificate does not clear scrutiny.
• You have no knowledge of the proposed business, or the project report cannot be substantiated at the district office interview.

Note that LIDCOM's other schemes carry different income limits. The 50 per cent Subsidy Scheme, for example, applies to below-poverty-line applicants with annual income not above Rs 1,00,000 and a loan ceiling of Rs 50,000. Applicants should check which scheme their income band and project size fit before filling a form.

What documents are required?

The caste and income certificates are the long pole. Both are issued by the tahsildar's office in Maharashtra and can take weeks, so start those before approaching LIDCOM rather than after.

How to apply for the LIDCOM Term Loan Scheme

1. Visit the LIDCOM District Office for your district during office hours and ask the concerned officer for the prescribed application form for the Term Loan Scheme. LIDCOM states that the form is issued in hard copy at the district office; there is no published online application route.
2. Prepare a project report covering the business you intend to run, the total project cost, the equipment or stock required, and the expected monthly income.
3. Obtain your caste certificate and income certificate from an authorised government officer, and collect residence proof, age proof, Aadhaar, photographs and your bank passbook.
4. Fill the application form completely and attach self-attested copies of every document, keeping the originals for verification.
5. Submit the completed form at the same district office and obtain an acknowledgement with the application reference.
6. Attend the district-level scrutiny, where the officer verifies the documents and assesses whether you have practical knowledge of the proposed trade.
7. Once LIDCOM recommends the case, follow up on the NSFDC sanction of the 75 per cent term loan and complete the bank formalities and the 5 per cent own contribution before disbursement.

How do you track the application?

LIDCOM has not published an online application-status tracker for the Term Loan Scheme. Applicants should keep the acknowledgement issued at the district office and follow up in person or by phone with the same district office quoting the application reference. The district office is also the point at which the NSFDC sanction and the bank disbursement stage are confirmed. For escalation, the Corporation's head office at 45, Veer Nariman Marg, Bombay Life Building, 5th floor, Fort, Mumbai 400 001 handles district-level grievances, and the Social Justice and Special Assistance Department's portal at sjsa.maharashtra.gov.in carries LIDCOM's corporate contact details.

Why applications get rejected

• Caste certificate not from an authorised officer, or a caste shown that is outside the Charmakar group LIDCOM serves.
• Income above Rs 3,00,000, which places the applicant outside the scheme's income band.
• Age outside 18 to 50 at the time of application.
• Weak or borrowed project report, a proposal the applicant cannot explain at the district office is treated as a poor credit risk.
• No demonstrable knowledge of the trade, which LIDCOM lists as an eligibility requirement rather than a preference.
• Existing default on an earlier LIDCOM or NSFDC loan.
• Incomplete file, missing residence proof, unsigned form, or documents submitted without self-attestation.

LIDCOM's other schemes worth comparing

Applicants who do not fit the Term Loan Scheme often fit another LIDCOM product. The 50 per cent Subsidy Scheme gives a loan up to Rs 50,000 with 50 per cent as subsidy subject to a maximum of Rs 10,000, aimed at below-poverty-line applicants with income up to Rs 1,00,000. The Margin Money Loan Scheme covers projects from Rs 50,001 to Rs 5,00,000, with LIDCOM paying 20 per cent of project cost as seed capital at 4 per cent and up to Rs 10,000 as subsidy, the balance coming from a bank. Micro Credit Finance, Mahila Samridhi Yojana, the Education Loan Scheme and the Utkarsh Loan Scheme address smaller working-capital needs, women's self-employment and education respectively.

Choosing the right scheme at the counter saves months. A vegetable stall or small footwear repair unit is better matched to Micro Credit Finance or the 50 per cent Subsidy Scheme, while a leather goods unit, a small workshop or a transport vehicle usually falls in the Term Loan or Margin Money band.

Where to get help

• District Office: the LIDCOM district office is the only published application and follow-up point for this scheme.
• Head Office: 45, Veer Nariman Marg, Bombay Life Building, 5th floor, Fort, Mumbai 400 001.
• Department: Social Justice and Special Assistance Department, Government of Maharashtra: sjsa.maharashtra.gov.in.

LIDCOM has not published a dedicated toll-free helpline for the Term Loan Scheme, so applicants should not rely on numbers circulated by private agents. No agent is authorised to charge a commission for obtaining a LIDCOM loan sanction.