Paryatan Sahayata Prakalpa

What is Paryatan Sahayata Prakalpa?

Paryatan Sahayata Prakalpa is a working capital support scheme of the Tourism Department, Government of West Bengal, created to keep the state's travel and tourism businesses alive through the Covid-19 collapse in travel. Its stated objective is to "provide need based working capital assistance to units functioning in travel and tourism sector affected by the Covid 19 outbreak".

The scheme carries a total fund allocation of Rs 100 crore and works through nationalised banks and financial institutions rather than by direct state payment. West Bengal's contribution takes the form of an interest subsidy: the unit borrows from a bank, and the state pays down part of the first year's interest cost. Applications are routed through the West Bengal Tourism Development Corporation Limited (WBTDCL) website and screened by a committee before reaching a bank. The scheme's stated validity ran to 31 March 2022.

Tourism is unusually exposed to a travel shutdown because its costs do not stop when its revenue does. A hotel still pays staff, electricity and property charges with zero occupancy; a tour operator still holds advances and staff commitments with zero departures. Paryatan Sahayata Prakalpa was aimed exactly at that gap, not at expansion capital, not at new construction, but at the running cash a unit needed to survive months of no business.

Who is eligible for Paryatan Sahayata Prakalpa?

Eligible categories

• Hotels and resorts holding valid star classification.
• Tourist transport operators accredited with India Tourism.
• Tour operators and travel agents holding GST registration.
• Tourist boats and houseboats with a proper licence.
• Registered homestays under the state homestay scheme.
• Budget hotels, motels and wayside facilities.
• Convention centres.

The common thread is formal registration or recognition. A unit had to be identifiable as a tourism business through a certificate somebody in government had issued, a star classification, an India Tourism accreditation, a homestay registration, a boat licence or a GST number.

Who cannot apply

• Individuals seeking personal relief cannot apply. Paryatan Sahayata Prakalpa is a business credit scheme. A tour guide, hotel worker or driver who lost income but does not own a registered tourism unit is not eligible under this scheme, and should look instead at state labour and social security schemes for unorganised workers.
• Unregistered homestays are not eligible. The eligibility list names registered homestays specifically, and registration under the state homestay framework is what separates a qualifying unit from a private guest room.
• Hotels without valid star classification are outside the hotel and resort category, though a budget hotel or motel may qualify under the separate budget category.
• Tour operators and travel agents without GST registration are not eligible, since GST registration is written into that category's condition.
• Units outside West Bengal are not eligible. This is a state scheme for units functioning in the state.
• Units whose loan account slips out of standard status lose the interest subvention even after sanction; technically not an eligibility bar at the entry gate, but the same effect on the money.

How much money does Paryatan Sahayata Prakalpa provide?

Assistance is structured in three slabs, using the same naming as the national MUDRA categories:

Rs 10 lakh is the ceiling for any single unit. Within a slab the amount is need-based, which means a unit had to justify the working capital it was asking for rather than automatically draw the slab maximum.

The state's own contribution is the interest subvention: 50 per cent of the interest for the first year, subject to a cap of 4 per cent of the loan amount. Two conditions attach. The loan account must remain in standard status, and repayments must be current. A unit that fell into arrears lost the subsidy while continuing to owe the full principal and interest.

It is worth being blunt about what this means. The Rs 100 crore allocation is not Rs 100 crore of grants. The principal is a repayable bank loan. A unit that borrowed Rs 10 lakh owed Rs 10 lakh back to the bank on the bank's terms. What the state paid for was part of the first year's interest, and the 4 per cent cap put a hard limit on that; at Rs 10 lakh, the maximum state benefit is Rs 40,000 of interest.

What documents are required for Paryatan Sahayata Prakalpa?

How to apply for Paryatan Sahayata Prakalpa

1. Confirm your category and registration. Match your unit to one of the listed categories and make sure the certificate for that category, star classification, India Tourism accreditation, homestay registration, boat licence or GST registration; is valid and in the business's name.
2. Work out the working capital you actually need and put it on paper. The scheme funds a need, not a slab, so a statement of monthly fixed costs and the gap you are covering is the core of the application.
3. Apply online through the West Bengal Tourism Development Corporation (WBTDCL) website, choosing the slab; Shishu, Kishor or Tarun — that matches the amount you are seeking, and upload the registration, GST, KYC and bank documents.
4. Wait for the committee evaluation. Applications are assessed by a committee before being forwarded onward. This is the stage at which category eligibility and the justification for the amount are checked.
5. Complete the bank's own process. Once forwarded, a nationalised bank or financial institution takes the credit decision and executes the loan documents. The committee's recommendation does not by itself create a sanction.
6. Keep the account in standard status. The 50 per cent first-year interest subvention, capped at 4 per cent of the loan, is conditional on the account staying standard with payments current. Missing instalments forfeits it.

How do I check my application status?

Status is tracked at two separate points, and applicants regularly confuse them. The WBTDCL portal shows where the application stands in state-side processing, up to committee evaluation and forwarding. Once the file goes to a bank, the bank branch is the only place that knows the credit position. The tourism portal cannot tell you what the branch has decided. If your application has been forwarded but nothing has moved, the branch relationship manager, not the Tourism Department, is the person to ask.

Why were applications rejected?

• Category certificate missing or expired. A hotel without valid star classification, or a homestay without state registration, does not fit any eligible category.
• No GST registration for a tour operator or travel agent, where the condition is explicit.
• Amount not justified: asking for the Tarun ceiling without a working capital statement supporting it.
• Weak bank credit assessment. The bank's own view of repayment capacity is independent of committee recommendation, and a poor credit record could sink an otherwise eligible application.
• Unit not functioning in West Bengal, or documents in a name different from the applicant entity.

What are the key dates for Paryatan Sahayata Prakalpa?

The scheme's stated validity was 31 March 2022. It was framed explicitly as Covid-19 relief for the travel and tourism sector, which is why it carried an end date rather than running open-ended. No fresh application window has been notified since, and operators should not assume the scheme is currently accepting applications. The correct check is with the Tourism Department, Government of West Bengal or WBTDCL directly, through wbtourism.gov.in, before making any commitment on the strength of it.

Where do I raise a grievance about Paryatan Sahayata Prakalpa?

Grievances split by stage. For anything up to committee evaluation; application not registered, documents not accepted, no movement on the file, the route is WBTDCL and the Tourism Department, Government of West Bengal, through wbtourism.gov.in. For anything after the file reaches a lender, sanction refused, disbursement delayed, interest subvention not credited. The route is the bank's own grievance channel, starting at the branch, then the bank's nodal grievance officer, and finally the RBI Banking Ombudsman under the integrated ombudsman scheme. A subvention that never reached a standard, current account is a lender-side issue in the first instance, and should be raised with the branch in writing with the loan account number quoted.