Scheme for Tourism-related Activities

What is the Scheme for Tourism-related Activities?

Scheme for Tourism-related Activities is a term loan scheme of the Pondicherry Industrial Promotion Development and Investment Corporation Limited (PIPDIC), a Government of Puducherry undertaking under the Department of Industries and Commerce. PIPDIC's published schemes of assistance describe the purpose as financial assistance to entrepreneurs for setting up or developing amusement parks, cultural centres, convention centres, restaurants and tourist service agencies, including expansion and modernisation of existing facilities.

Tourism is one of Puducherry's principal economic activities. The Union Territory draws visitors to its heritage quarters, its coastline and its cultural institutions across all four regions, and the businesses that serve those visitors; from a convention centre to a tour operator, are capital-intensive at the start and seasonal in their revenue. PIPDIC's tourism scheme is written around that pattern, which is why it carries the longest repayment period of any PIPDIC scheme: up to 10 years including moratorium.

How much can be financed under the tourism scheme?

Loan amount: need-based. PIPDIC does not publish a fixed loan ceiling for this scheme; the amount is assessed from the project cost, the promoter's contribution and the projected cash flow.

Maximum project cost: Rs 1,200 lakh: Rs 12 crore. This is the largest project size among PIPDIC's tourism and hospitality lines, and considerably larger than the Rs 500 lakh allowed for hospitals or the Rs 250 lakh for cold storage and marriage or convention halls.

Repayment: up to 10 years including moratorium.

Interest:

A 0.5 per cent concession applies to units promoted by women, Scheduled Caste, Scheduled Tribe or differently abled persons.

Debt-equity norm: up to 3:1 for loans up to Rs 25 lakh and up to 2:1 above that.

Investigation fee: 0.50 per cent of the loan applied up to Rs 25 lakh, 0.75 per cent above it, with a 50 per cent concession for SC and ST entrepreneurs.

Who is eligible for the tourism scheme?

You can apply if:

• You are an entrepreneur setting up, expanding or modernising an amusement park, cultural centre, convention centre, restaurant or tourist service agency in the Union Territory of Puducherry.
• You are a proprietorship, partnership firm, private limited company or public limited company.
• Your project cost is within Rs 1,200 lakh.
• You can obtain Tourism Department approval for the project.
• You can bring the promoter contribution required under the debt-equity norm and offer immovable property as collateral.

You cannot apply if:

• Your project is outside the Union Territory of Puducherry, including the Karaikal, Mahe and Yanam regions.
• You are seeking a grant or a tourism subsidy. This is a secured term loan. Incentives and subsidies for eligible enterprises are handled separately by the Department of Industries and Commerce under the industrial policy, and by the Department of Tourism under its own schemes.
• Your project cannot get Tourism Department approval.
• You have no collateral property meeting PIPDIC's valuation norms.
• You are an existing defaulter with PIPDIC, a bank or a financial institution.
• You are building a marriage hall, community hall or commercial godown as such. PIPDIC has a separate scheme for those, with a Rs 250 lakh limit, a 2:1 debt-equity norm and 8-year repayment excluding a 2-year moratorium.

What documents are required?

How to apply for the Scheme for Tourism-related Activities

1. Get the site and the approvals lined up first. A tourism project depends on location, and PIPDIC's note records that Tourism Department approval is required. Approach the Department of Tourism, Government of Puducherry, before the loan application rather than after.
2. Prepare the detailed project report, the activity, land and civil work, equipment or rides, staffing, expected footfall, tariff and seasonality, and the means of finance including your own contribution.
3. Register as a New Customer on pipdic.in and log in.
4. Open the correct loan form: Application Upto 25 Lakhs or Above 25 Lakhs under Loan Applications.
5. Fill the application and upload the documents; plans, civil estimate, quotations with comparatives, promoter documents, constitution documents and collateral particulars.
6. Pay the application fee online: Rs 100 up to Rs 25 lakh, Rs 200 above Rs 25 lakh.
7. Go through appraisal, including verification of quotations and valuation of the collateral by a Chartered Engineer from PIPDIC's approved panel.
8. Complete documentation after sanction: original and antecedent title deeds, 30-year encumbrance certificate, valuation certificate, patta, FMB copy, tax receipts and legal opinion. Disbursement is generally staged against civil progress and supplier invoices.

How do I check my application status?

1. Log in to pipdic.in and use the application status view under your customer account.
2. Quote the application number generated at submission.
3. Contact The Managing Director, PIPDIC Ltd., No. 60, Romain Rolland Street, Puducherry 605001 — 0413-2334361, info@pipdic.com.
4. Use the Enquiry or Grievance form on pipdic.in.

Common reasons tourism applications are rejected

• Tourism Department approval not obtained, which PIPDIC's own note treats as a requirement for tourism lending.
• Site title not clear. A short or unregistered lease, or encumbrances in the 30-year certificate.
• Project cost above Rs 1,200 lakh, which puts the proposal outside the scheme.
• Footfall and tariff projections unsupported, particularly for amusement and cultural facilities where seasonality is sharp.
• Single quotations for rides, equipment or fit-out, without comparatives.
• Local body or environmental clearance missing for a site near the coast or in a regulated zone.
• Existing default with a bank or financial institution.

Key dates

PIPDIC accepts tourism applications through the year and publishes no window. The Rs 1,200 lakh project ceiling, the 10-year repayment, the interest rates and the fee rates cited here are PIPDIC's published norms; the rate applied is the one prevailing on the date of sanction, which matters for a project with a 10-year tenure.

Help and contact

• The Managing Director, PIPDIC Ltd., No. 60, Romain Rolland Street, Puducherry 605001 to 0413-2334361, info@pipdic.com
• General Manager (Administration), PIPDIC Ltd.; mobile 9894653835
• Online applications, pipdic.in
• Scheme list; pipdic.in/pipdic_schemes
• Financial norms, pipdic.in/financial_norms
• Department of Tourism, Government of Puducherry; tourism.py.gov.in
• Department of Industries and Commerce: industry.py.gov.in