Implementation updates and impact findings of the PM SVANidhi scheme
PM SVANidhi scheme: eligibility expansion, impact findings, and digital-credit enablement for street vendors
- PM SVANidhi was initially implemented in statutory urban areas and is being expanded in a phased manner beyond those areas to include census towns and peri-urban areas.
- ISB, Hyderabad conducted impact studies for PM SVANidhi in 2023 and 2025 and reported business-income growth and higher digital payments adoption among PM SVANidhi borrowers.
- States/Union Territories carry out surveys under the Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Act, 2014, and Urban Local Bodies issue Certificates of Vending for eligible street vendors.
- The Ministry reported that UPI-linked RuPay Credit Cards were launched on 23 January 2026 for PM SVANidhi beneficiaries who repaid the second loan tranche; the Ministry also reported city-wise issuance counts as of 12 July 2026 for Katni, Panna and Khajuraho.
The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs reported implementation updates and impact assessment findings for the PM SVANidhi scheme for street vendors. The government’s focus combines expanded geographic coverage with credit delivery and digital onboarding, and it cites two impact assessment rounds conducted by the Indian School of Business (ISB), Hyderabad in 2023 and 2025.
What happened: implementation expansion and reported impact
ISB, Hyderabad conducted impact assessment studies for PM SVANidhi in 2023 and 2025. The 2023 study covered 100 Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) across India with more than 5,000 beneficiaries and reported that PM SVANidhi was the first bank loan for 95% of beneficiaries and that borrowers used the loan to expand their businesses. The 2025 study covered 99 ULBs across India with more than 5,000 beneficiaries (with around 60% of respondents overlapping with the 2023 study sample) and reported that average annualized business income among SVANidhi borrowers grew by around 20% between 2023 and 2025. The government also reported that around 30% of borrowers across all cycles held loans other than PM SVANidhi loans, indicating credit-history building for vendors who previously had little or no access to formal credit.
UPS C framing can test how credit-linked welfare is delivered to informal vendors using (1) legal identification through the Street Vendors Act, 2014 and (2) banking + UPI-linked digital payment instruments, while expanding geographic coverage in a phased manner beyond statutory urban areas. The key analytical link is whether credit access translates into measurable outcomes such as business income, credit histories, and improved household welfare outcomes.
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