National Scheduled Tribes Finance and Development Corporation (NSTFDC)

Check the gate first

• Every scheme is for Scheduled Tribe applicants only. If you or your group members are not Scheduled Tribe, these loans are not open to you.
• You must live in the state or Union Territory where your tribe is notified.
• Cooperative societies need at least 80% Scheduled Tribe members, and that share must hold for as long as the loan runs.
• Self help groups must already be making a profit to use the micro-credit scheme.

Choose the right scheme

• A new or growing small venture: the term loan.
• A woman-led unit: Adivasi Mahila Sashaktikaran Yojana.
• Waiting for another loan or subsidy: a bridge loan.
• A self help group: micro-credit.
• Land rights under the Forest Rights Act, 2006: the Tribal Forest Dwellers Empowerment Scheme.
• A professional or technical course: the education loan.

How to apply

• Go to the district office of the State Channelizing Agency for your state. NSTFDC says this is where to get guidance and file your application.
• Ask the agency for its own eligibility rules, since each one sets its own terms on top of NSTFDC's.
• Ask which income limit applies. The NSTFDC site shows different limits on different pages.
• NSTFDC's page of application forms has separate forms for transport, agriculture and allied sectors, industry and other allied sectors, micro-credit and the education loan.

Before you go

• Have a clear, viable project and an idea of the unit cost, because the loan covers most of the cost and you contribute the rest.
• Remember that these are repayable loans. Plan your repayment around quarterly instalments.

The National Scheduled Tribes Finance and Development Corporation (NSTFDC) is a government corporation under the Ministry of Tribal Affairs, set up in 2001 with its head office in New Delhi. It is not an incubator and does not run cohorts. It lends to Scheduled Tribe individuals, groups and cooperatives at concessional rates, and pays for skill training for tribal youth.

Who it is for

Every scheme is closed to anyone outside the Scheduled Tribes. Individuals, self help groups and partnerships must have only Scheduled Tribe members. Cooperative societies need at least 80% Scheduled Tribe members. Help goes only to people who live in the state or Union Territory where their tribe is notified as a Scheduled Tribe. Family income limits also apply, but the site gives different limits on different pages, so confirm the current figure with your state agency before you plan around it.

How the schemes work

NSTFDC does not lend straight to borrowers. Money moves through State Channelizing Agencies, the state or Union Territory bodies that handle Scheduled Tribe finance. The agency checks your eligibility, applies its own terms and files the loan. If you are a Scheduled Tribe founder, your first step is the district office of the agency in your state.

The schemes it lists are term loans for income-generating ventures in industry, agriculture and services, short-term bridge loans, a women-only scheme called Adivasi Mahila Sashaktikaran Yojana, micro-credit for self help groups, an education loan called Adivasi Shikha Rrinn Yojana, and a scheme for forest dwellers who hold land rights under the Forest Rights Act, 2006. It also lends to NGOs and other agencies that work with Scheduled Tribe self help groups, and offers marketing support and finance for artisans empanelled with TRIFED.

Skill and entrepreneurship training

NSTFDC gives grants for skill and entrepreneurship development programmes. These are run by government, semi-government or autonomous government bodies and proposed by the State Channelizing Agencies. A founder cannot apply for the grant directly, but can join a programme sponsored by the agency in their state.

What it is not

The loans are loans: they are repaid, usually in quarterly instalments within a maximum of 5 years including the moratorium. They are not grants, and they do not come with mentoring, workspace or investment. NSTFDC does not take equity. For startup grants, incubation or funding rounds, founders will need other programmes on this site.

Who runs it

The corporation is managed by a Board of Directors with representatives from the Central Government, the State Channelizing Agencies, NABARD, IDBI, TRIFED and three eminent persons representing Scheduled Tribes. Its stated mission is to work towards the economic empowerment of Scheduled Tribes communities in India. Its vision is the empowerment of Scheduled Tribes of India in a sustainable manner.

Offices

The head office is at NBCC Tower, 5th Floor, 15 Bhikaji Cama Place, New Delhi 110066. Zonal offices are in Bhopal, Bhubaneswar, Hyderabad and Guwahati. The site also lists a careers page with job advertisements and lists of shortlisted and selected candidates.