GUWAHATI: Taking a leap towards creating an enabling atmosphere for entrepreneurship supporting the entrepreneurs of the state, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma today launched Chief Minister's Atmanirbhar Asom Abhijan (CMAAA) 2.0 at a function held at Lok Sewa Bhawan here today.
It may be noted that under CMAAA 1.0, which is the state government's flagship entrepreneur support initiative, Chief Minister Sarma distributed Rs. 510 crore to 25,238 budding entrepreneurs across the state. CMAAA 2.0 is an extension of the earlier mission, which has been designed to further enhance the spirit of entrepreneurship in the state. 75,000 beneficiaries will be selected for the CMAAA 2.0.
Speaking on the occasion, Chief Minister Sarma said that the state government is committed to starting a new era of entrepreneurship in Assam whereby the empowered youth will be given opportunities to start their entrepreneurial ventures. He said that under CMAAA 2.0, the selected beneficiaries will receive Rs. 5 lakh for the professional course category and Rs. 2 lakh for the non-professional course category in two trenches as entrepreneurship incentives. Applicants possessing a four-year degree in the field of engineering, medicine, agriculture, veterinary, and fishery will be treated as professional course category applicants. whereas all other applicants (except the professional category) will be treated as non-professional course categories.
The Chief Minister moreover said that the interested and eligible applicants will have to register themselves in the CMAAA portal (http://cmaaa.assam.gov.in) and subsequently submit the detailed project report during the application phase. The portal will remain open till 18 November for registration. The Chief Minister, however, said that in the five districts where bye-elections have been declared, applicants will get a chance to register for CMAAA 2.0 once the election model code of conduct comes to an end.
Sarma also said that taking experience from CMAAA 1.0, the eligibility age for the applicants has been raised to 45 years, which was earlier 40 years. He also said that the applicants must have skill, experience, and knowledge to perform income generating activities, and they must have a scheduled commercial bank account opened before April 1, 2024. He also said that to be eligible for CMAAA 2.0, the applicants should not be defaulters in loan repayment taken from any scheduled commercial bank, and the applicants' household member spouse or sibling must not be a beneficiary of CMAAA 1.0.
The Chief Minister said that the spirit of the Chief Minister's Atmanirbhar Asom Abhijan is to empower youth of the state and inculcate in them entrepreneurial skills. He also said that through the abhijan efforts will be made to make the beneficiaries eligible and competent for Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana, a flagship scheme of the Central Government that facilitates microcredit/loan up to Rs. 10 lakh to income generating microenterprises.
Sarma further said that CMAAA has been envisaged to create an enabling environment for the entrepreneurs by providing financial support to the beneficiaries. He said that through CMAAA 2.0, the government will try to unleash Assam's entrepreneurial spirit and drive the state's growth. The Chief Minister on the occasion also presented authority letters to CM Fellows, the 130 mentors who have been selected for mentoring the beneficiaries of CMAAA 1.0 and helping them to become prospective entrepreneurs, a press release said.
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