National Backward Classes Finance and Development Corporation (NBCFDC)

Check the scheme before you contact anyone

• Individual loans are for individuals. Group loans are for Self Help Groups where at least 60% of members belong to Backward Classes, with the other members from weaker sections.
• Eligibility depends on being notified as a member of a Backward Class by the Central or State Government. Keep your caste certificate ready.
• The income ceiling for individual loans is stated differently on two NBCFDC pages. Confirm the current limit with your Channel Partner before you apply.

How to apply for a loan

• Get the prescribed form from the Channel Partner in your district, a State Channelising Agency or a partner bank, and apply at its district office.
• Say clearly what activity the loan is for and what training you need, if any.
• Prepare a caste certificate and proof of income. The NBCFDC page says a self-certified income certificate, endorsed by a gazetted officer of the State Government or by the branch manager of the lending bank, is also admissible.
• You can also register online on the NBCFDC website. Requests are forwarded to the concerned Channel Partner, which contacts you.

How selection works

The Channel Partner processes each loan under its own due process, so the local office is your first point of contact for a decision.

How to apply for the fellowship

• Only OBC candidates pursuing full-time M.Phil or Ph.D programmes qualify.
• Applications run through the Scholarship Fellowship Management Portal linked from the NFOBC page.
• For questions, write to nf-obc@nbcfdc.gov.in or call 011-45854421.

NBCFDC, the National Backward Classes Finance & Development Corporation, is a Government of India undertaking under the aegis of the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment. It was incorporated as a company not for profit on 13th January 1992, to promote economic activity for Backward Classes and to help the poorer members of those classes build skills and self-employment ventures.

It is a finance body, not an incubator or accelerator. It does not run a startup programme. Its core work is concessional credit for income-generating activities, reached through partner institutions.

How the loans reach borrowers

NBCFDC provides financial assistance through State Channelising Agencies (SCAs) nominated by the State Governments and Union Territories, and through banks. Individual and group loans are handed to borrowers by these Channel Partners, who run the local process. The corporation also provides micro-finance through SCAs, banks and Self Help Groups.

The schemes

The Individual Loan Scheme lends to individual members of Backward Classes for income-generating activities and for education. The Group Loan Scheme lends to Self Help Groups in which at least 60% of members belong to Backward Classes. The National Fellowship for Other Backward Classes (NFOBC) is a separate fellowship for OBC students pursuing full-time M.Phil and Ph.D degrees. NBCFDC is its nodal agency, and the scheme offers 1000 slots a year.

Who can apply

Loans are for members of Backward Classes as notified by the Central or State Government, whose annual family income is within the limit the scheme sets. Income-generating loans can fund any activity with the potential to provide sustainable income. The corporation's stated sectors are agriculture and allied activities, small business and artisan or traditional occupations, technical and professional trades and courses, and transport and service sectors.

Skill development

Skill development for eligible people is one of the corporation's stated objectives. Registration for skill training under PM DAKSH is available from its website.

Where it is

NBCFDC's office is on the 5th Floor of the NCUI Building, 3 Siri Institutional Area, August Kranti Marg, New Delhi.