New Delhi: The Ministry of India is implementing the Start-up Village Entrepreneurship Programme (SVEP), as a sub-scheme under Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana - National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM) since 2015-16. Under this programme, the block is the unit of implementation. As of 30th June 2021, 183 project proposals have been approved across 29 States/Union Territories across the country. These projects cover 160 districts and 205 blocks. SVEP allows for more than one block to be combined under one project.

A mid-term review of SVEP was carried out during 2018-19 by the Quality Council of India (QCI), which indicated that the programme was able to meet the objectives. Some of the key findings were:

1. 82% of entrepreneurs across the blocks reported being from Scheduled Caste, Scheduled Tribe, and Other Backward Class categories.
2. 75% of the enterprises were owned and managed by women.
3. 57% of the total household income is through the enterprises promoted under SVEP.
4. The average gross income of the entrepreneurs is higher than the aspirational income stated by them from the enterprise at the time of starting the enterprise.
5. Around 96% of the entrepreneurs reported an enhancement in savings.
6. 70% of the entrepreneurs interviewed reported that taking loans from Community Enterprise Fund (CEF) was easy.

The number of enterprises supported in Blocks during the last three years and current year States/UT wise is provided in Annexure.

Number of Blocks where implementation has started and number of Enterprises formed

This information was given by the Union Minister of State for Rural Development Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti in written during the Lok Sabha on 3rd August 2021.