India is endowed with a plethora of traditional industries. This industry not only contributes significantly to large-scale job possibilities at a relatively cheap capital cost but also contributes to rural and backward area industrialization, therefore decreasing regional imbalances and ensuring a more equal distribution of income and wealth. Traditional industries’ eco-friendly goods offer enormous potential for development in production and export, as well as for establishing speciality products for local and international markets.
In this article, we will be discussing the details of the SFURTI Scheme launched by the Indian Government for uplifting our traditional industries.
Full Form and Objective of SFURTI Scheme
SFURTI – Scheme of Fund for Regeneration of Traditional Industries: In 2005, the Indian government established a program under the auspices of the Ministry of MSME with the objective of promoting cluster growth in the traditional industries sector.
Traditional industries that employ a sizable portion of the workforce should improve their productivity and economic sustainability. With the SFURTI program in place, Common Facility Centers were to be built with the goal of creating long-term job possibilities.
The SFURTI plan focuses on sectors like bamboo, khadi, and honey with the primary purpose of assisting rural craftsmen and businesses.
The Scheme’s aims are as follows:
- To cluster traditional industries and artisans in order to increase their competitiveness and support their long-term sustainability and economies of scale;
- To provide sustained employment for artisans and rural entrepreneurs in traditional industries and clusters;
- To increase the marketability of products produced by such clusters by supporting new products, design intervention, and improved packaging.
- To improve the skills and capabilities of traditional artisans in the associated clusters through training and exposure visits;
- To provide common facilities and improved tools and equipment for artisans to maximize the use of infrastructure facilities;
- To enhance cluster governance systems through the active engagement of stakeholders;
- To develop innovative and traditional talents, sophisticated technology, advanced processes, market intelligence, and new forms of public-private partnerships, to gradually replicate comparable cluster-based regenerated traditional industries.
- To establish a multi-product cluster with an integrated value chain and a strong market-driven strategy to assure the cluster’s viability and long-term sustainability;
- To achieve convergence from the design stage with each cluster creation and operation activity.
- To identify and comprehend the cluster’s target consumers, appreciate their wants and ambitions, and design and offer product lines that fulfill their needs and aspirations. Significant emphasis should be placed on the customer group that values natural, eco-friendly, ethically sourced products, and the distinctiveness of Khadi and VI items.
- To create distinct product lines from the diverse basket of heterogeneous items now supplied based on an understanding of the target market category. Additionally, a brand unification exercise should be conducted to optimize the benefit.
- To make a paradigm change away from a supply-driven sales approach towards a market-driven sales model with the appropriate branding, focus product mix, positioning, and price to provide a holistic and optimum offering for each of the focus categories.
- To leverage E-Commerce as a significant marketing channel, given its reach and rising market penetration, there is a need to develop a rapid plan for establishing a presence in the E-Retail arena.
- To spend significantly on product design and quality enhancement. Standardizing the quality of inputs and processes is necessary to ensure that products satisfy quality standards. Research must be conducted to produce new textures and finishes that are compatible with current market trends.
How to Register for SFURTI (Eligibility, Forms Required, And Steps)
To apply for a loan under the SFURTI scheme, eligible entities/agencies/organizations must submit a proposal to the State Office, KVIC, which is then checked at the State and Zonal levels before being forwarded to the Scheme Steering Committee for final approval.
Eligibility Criteria
- Beneficiary Guidelines
- To be eligible for this initiative, applicants must be Indian nationals or permanent residents of India.
- Eligibility for Selection of Clusters
- The clusters must be based on khadi, coir, and village industries like leather and pottery.
- In order to get the eligibility, the clusters should be geographically distributed throughout the nation, at least 10% of them must be located in northern areas.
Clusters will be chosen based on their geographic concentrations within one or two revenue sub-divisions of about 500 beneficiary households including artisans / micro-enterprises, raw material suppliers, dealers, and service providers situated throughout the districts.
Who Can Apply
- Non-Government Organizations (NGOs)
- Institutions of the Central and State Governments
- Semi-Government institutions
- Field functionaries of State and Central Govt.
- Panchayati Raj institutions (PRIs)
Steps to Apply
Step 1: Access to the SFURTI Yojana’s official website, i.e. sfurti.msme.gov.in.
Step 2- From the homepage, choose the “SignUP” option; The screen will display the SFURTI application page.
Step 3- Now, under Choose Agency Option, select Agency Type and Organization Category; A web browser page will display the SFURTI Registration Form.
Step 4- At this stage, provide the User Name, Email Address, Address, Pincode, State, District, Password, Mobile Number, and Verification Code.
Step 6- After that, click the Submit button to complete the registration.
Step 6- After logging into your SFURTI account; request a new proposal with the relevant details and documentation.
Step 7- Finally; click the SFURTI Proposal Form’s Submit button.
Important Document to Apply Online
- Aadhar card
- Residence certificate
- Income certificate
- Passport size photograph
- Mobile number
- Bank details
Summary of SFURTI Guidelines
Indian Govt announced the formation of a fund for traditional industry regeneration, with an initial investment of Rs 100 crore, intending to increase the productivity and competitiveness of traditional industries while also fostering their long-term growth. Following this statement, a Central Sector Scheme called “Scheme of Fund for Regeneration of Traditional Industries (SFURTI)” was sanctioned with an estimated cost of Rs 97.25 crore. The Ministry of Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSME) and its organizations executed the Scheme in collaboration with state governments, their organizations, and non-governmental organizations (Khadi and Village Industries Commission-KVIC and Coir Board).
The cluster governance mechanisms would be strengthened with the active engagement of stakeholders. Approximately 70 clusters would be established across the nation under the SFURTI plan, with a total investment of Rs. 149.44 crores. Furthermore, the 12th Five Year Plan states that about 800 clusters are envisaged with support from the Government of India and the Asian Development Bank. The Government of India has allocated three years for each cluster’s project implementation.
FAQs about SFURTI Scheme
- What is the highest amount that SFURTI can sanction?
The plan allows for a maximum of 8 crores in funding to cover soft, hard, and theme interventions. It qualifies for a cluster with a minimum of 1000-2500 craftsmen.
- What is the maximum time frame for project completion?
The scheme allows for a maximum of three years to complete the project. This is the maximum time limit in which the project must be completed.
- Whether the working capital will be provided?
Yes. 20% of the hard intervention cost will be utilized towards the Working Capital corpus.
- Who can serve as Technical Agencies (T.A.)?
Only established national/regional level institutions with demonstrated competence in the artisanal and small enterprise cluster development shall be appointed as Technical Agencies by the Nodal Agency (N.A.)
- What actions are included in Soft Intervention?
The project’s soft interventions would include activities such as
- General awareness, counselling, motivation, and trust-building
- Capacity building and skill development
- Institutional growth
- Exposition visits
- Initiatives for Market Promotion
- Product Design and Development
- Attendance at seminars, workshops, and training programs on technological advancements, etc.
- What services are provided by Hard Intervention?
- Hard interventions will involve the establishment of the following facilities:
- Creation of Common Facility Centres (CFCs)
- Establishment of Raw Material Banks (RMBs)
- Production Infrastructure Improvement
- Tools and Technological Improvements such as Charkha Upgrade, Tool Kit Distribution, and so on
- Warehousing Facility
- Training Facility
- Addition of value and processing unit
