A significant section of the workforce of the Indian economy consists of artisans and craftspeople who work with their hands and tools, are usually self-employed and are generally considered to be a part of the informal or unorganised sector of the economy. These traditional artisans and craftspeople are referred to as ‘Vishwakarmas’ and are engaged in occupations like Blacksmiths, Goldsmiths, Potters, Carpenters, Sculptors, etc. These skills or occupations are passed from generation-to-generation following a guru-shishya model of traditional training, both within the families and other informal groups of artisans and craftspeople.

In the above backdrop, a new scheme, called ‘PM Vishwakarma’, aims at improving the quality as well as the reach of products and services of artisans and craftspeople and to ensure that the Vishwakarmas are integrated into the domestic and global value chains. It is the goal of this Scheme to offer holistic end-to-end support to the Vishwakarmas, i.e. the artisans and craftspeople, to enable them to move up the value chain in their respective trades. It will bring a qualitative shift in the way these occupations are practised by artisans and craftspeople and this will uplift their socio-economic status as well as their quality of life.

PM Vishwakarma will be implemented as a Central Sector Scheme, fully funded by the Government of India, with an initial outlay of Rs 13,000 crore. The Scheme will be conjointly implemented by the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MoMSME), the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) and the Department of Financial Services (DFS), Ministry of Finance (MoF), Government of India.

MoMSME will be the Nodal Ministry for the Scheme and Additional Secretary & Development Commissioner (MSME) in Ministry of MSME will be the focal point for all aspects of implementation and coordination. PM Vishwakarma will be initially implemented for five years up to 2027-28.

The objectives of the Scheme are as under:

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i. To enable the recognition of artisans and craftspeople as Vishwakarma, making them eligible to avail all the benefits under the Scheme.

ii. To provide skill upgradation to hone their skills and make relevant and suitable training opportunities available to them.

iii.To provide support for better and modern tools to enhance their capability, productivity, and quality of products and services.

iv. To provide the beneficiaries an easy access to collateral free credit and reduce the cost of credit by providing interest subvention.

v.To provide incentives for digital transactions to encourage digital empowerment of Vishwakarmas.

vi. Responsible for assessment, certification, and monitoring of training programs.

vii. To provide a platform for brand promotion and market linkages to help them access new opportunities for growth

i. The Scheme aims at providing several benefits to the Vishwakarmas, who are either self-employed or intend to setup their own small-scale ventures. The support provided through this Scheme to such beneficiaries will not only contribute to the preservation of cultural practices, generational skills and guru-shishya parampara but will also provide an identity and recognition to them.

ii. The Scheme envisages to provide end-to-end holistic support to artisans and craftspeople for their respective trades. Through the implementation of the Scheme, it is expected that beneficiaries who are currently working as entrepreneurs in the unorganised sector will be able to scale-up their operations, modernize/upgrade their tools and business, and enter the formal economy as entrepreneur and contribute towards the larger goal of nation building.

iii. The Scheme will be rolled out in rural and urban areas with a focus on saturating districts in a phased manner.

iv. The Scheme seeks to promote empowerment of women, and those belonging to the marginalised or under-served groups like the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, OBCs, Specially Abled, Transgenders, residents of NER states, Island Territories and Hilly Areas.

v. During the course of implementation of PM Vishwakarma, awareness for availing benefits of insurance, pension and health schemes will be promoted. Efforts will be made to increase awareness among the beneficiaries to avail social security benefits under the various schemes of the Government of India and State Governments such as Prime Minister Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana, Prime Minister Suraksha Bima Yojana, Atal Pension Yojana, Pradhan Mantri Shram Yogi Maan-dhan Yojana. It is expected that many beneficiaries of PM Vishwakarma will avail such benefits.

vi. The implementation framework of the Scheme will be participatory in nature and will involve coordination at multiple levels.