Smile Scheme:- The official name of the programme is Support for Marginalised Individuals for Livelihood and Enterprise, or SMILE. The Ministry of Empowerment and Social Justice initiated the initiative. Introducing the SMILE program on February 12, 2022. Two minor programs—one for transgender people and the other for beggars—make up the larger program.
The goal of SMILE is to offer marginalized people complete help and rehabilitation. The strategy covers a wide range of efforts, such as financial opportunities, healthcare facilities, counseling, welfare support, education, and skill development.
Contents
What is the SMILE Scheme?
Through financial support for their lifestyle and economic endeavors, the SMILE program aims to uplift those who are marginalized in society. It provides cash, business guidance, and job training to give people the tools they need to find employment and make money. The main goal is to reduce poverty by fostering entrepreneurship and sustainable livelihood prospects. The program aims to break the cycle of hardship that marginalized people face and to empower them.
Focus of the Scheme
The goal of the SMILE program is to give marginalized people financial support. Persons with disabilities (PwDs), Scheduled Tribes (STs), and Scheduled Castes (SCs) are all included in this. They can establish their own businesses in the following industries thanks to the scheme:
- Agriculture as well as related pursuits
- Handlooms and handicrafts
- tiny and microbusinesses
- Travel and hospitality
- Technology related to information and communication (ICT)
The program also offers beneficiaries support for capacity building and training. The NSFDC or other recognized training organizations will deliver the instruction. The program will include topics including marketing, entrepreneurship development, and company strategy.
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Objectives of the SMILE Scheme
The following are the goals of the SMILE Scheme:
- To give marginalized people vocational training and ability improvement.
- To make financial services and financing easier to obtain in order to establish and grow organizations.
- To establish environments that encourage entrepreneurship among underrepresented populations.
- To market viable means of subsistence for those on the margins.
- To guarantee marginalized communities equal opportunities and social inclusion.
Features of the SMILE Scheme
A variety of services are offered by the SMILE Scheme to assist marginalized people. Among them are:
- Development of skills: The program provides training courses to assist marginalized people in acquiring the abilities required to find employment.
- Financial assistance: The program offers loans, grants, and subsidies to underprivileged people in order to help them launch new enterprises or expand already existing ones.
- Entrepreneurship development: Through the provision of training, mentorship, and help with company planning, the program encourages entrepreneurship among underrepresented populations.
- Market connections: The program makes it easier for marginalized business owners to reach out to prospective clients and tap into larger marketplaces for goods and services.
- Building capacity: The program’s main objective is to increase the knowledge and abilities of marginalized people by providing them with training courses, workshops, and awareness campaigns.
SMILE Scheme Eligibility
- Comes from the community of Scheduled Caste.
- The candidate’s total annual family income cannot be more than Rs. 3 lakh.
- one of the deceased’s immediate family members; before to dying from COVID-19, this person served as the family’s primary provider.
- Acceptable kinds of documentation attesting to the primary breadwinner’s COVID-19-related death include a certificate from the Registrar of Births and Deaths or the local municipal body, as well as a receipt from the local government at the cremation or burial. In a village, a letter of death might also be accepted by the village’s Block Development Officer (BDO).
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Key Benefits of the SMILE Scheme
A government program called the SMILE Scheme offers marginalized people many benefits. Among these advantages are:
- Improved employability: The program provides training courses to assist marginalized people in acquiring the skills necessary to find employment.
- Financial resources: The program helps marginalized people launch new enterprises or expand already existing ones by offering loans, grants, and subsidies.
- Promotion of entrepreneurship: The program aggressively promotes entrepreneurship in underserved areas. It offers guidance, coaching, and support with company planning. It aids people in starting and running their own enterprises.
- Networking and market links: The program creates connections between marginalized business owners and prospective clients, suppliers, and vendors. They are able to reach wider audiences, create beneficial networks, and increase awareness of their goods and services as a result.
- Empowerment and capacity building: The plan is centered on activities that increase capacity, like awareness campaigns, training courses, and workshops. These initiatives help marginalized people gain better knowledge, abilities, and self-confidence. It gives individuals the ability to overcome obstacles, make wise decisions, and take advantage of chances for both career and personal development.
- Social inclusion and dignity: The program restores the dignity of those who have been marginalized and fosters social inclusion by offering all-encompassing support. Through skill development, financial empowerment, and business promotion, it helps break the cycle of marginalization and enables individuals to live meaningful lives and actively engage in society. People are lifted up and given a sense of self-worth and belonging by the program.
Funding Pattern of the SMILE Scheme
The following is the Support for Marginalised Individuals for Livelihood and Enterprise (SMILE) program’s financing pattern:
- Up to a maximum of Rs. 5 lakhs per unit, the Indian government will grant 100% of the project’s cost.
- For a maximum of Rs. 4.5 lakhs per unit, the NSFDC will lend up to 90% of the project’s total cost. There will be an annual interest rate of 12% on the loan.
- A 10% margin of the project cost will need to be contributed by the recipients.
Sub-Schemes Under SMILE
There are two sub-schemes in the SMILE scheme. Let’s examine these sub-schemes in more detail:
Comprehensive Rehabilitation Programme for Transgender Welfare in the Central Sector
- offers transgender students scholarships starting in the ninth grade and continuing through graduation.
- offers transgender people career options and programs for skill development.
- offers transgender people complete medical treatment, including assistance with gender-affirming surgery.
- ‘Garima Greh’ shelter homes are established for transsexual people.
- creates Gender Protection Cells in every state. These cells keep an eye on incidents of violence against transgender people.
- creates humanitarian programs and e-services to meet the needs and worries of the transgender community.
Central Sector Scheme for Comprehensive Rehabilitation of Individuals engaged in the act of Begging to
- identify beneficiaries who are begging by conducting questionnaires.
- carries out outreach initiatives to encourage people who are begging. It motivates people to take advantage of the facilities offered by shelter houses.
- creates shelter homes to offer a secure and encouraging environment to those who are begging.
- offers complete assistance for the recovery and reintegration of those involved in begging. It seeks to assist them in ending the cycle of begging and reintegrating into society at large.
Status of Beggars in India
In India, begging is a significant social problem that affects a wide range of people who are pleading for survival. Here are some important details on the perception of beggars in India:
- High Numbers: Countless estimates place the number of beggars in India walking into the hundreds of thousands.
- Vulnerability: Beggars are frequently the targets of abuse, exploitation, and impoverishment. They have to contend with the denial of access to education, healthcare, and decent housing, among other difficulties.
- Social Stigma: Beggars face prejudice and social stigma, which exacerbates their marginalization and limits their chances for a better life.
- Beggary is mostly caused by intergenerational poverty, which traps people in a cycle of poverty from which they have few options for escape.
- Lack of Rehabilitation: Beggars have had limited access to guidance and rehabilitation programs prior to the introduction of programs like SCRB, which has resulted in an endless cycle of begging.
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Other Initiatives by Using the Government Towards Beggars
Apart from the SMILE Scheme and SCRB, the government has implemented many measures to address the issue of homelessness and provide assistance to underprivileged people. Among the projects are:
- Rehabilitation Programmes: In an effort to empower and reintegrate beggars into society, a number of rehabilitation packages have been launched that offer healthcare, education, and vocational training.
- Awareness Campaigns: To educate the public about the difficulties encountered in providing assistance to beggars and to foster a more compassionate and welcoming society, the government organizes awareness campaigns.
- Cooperation with NGOs: In order to provide beggars with more assistance and offerings and to ensure a more thorough approach to their rehabilitation, the authorities work in conjunction with non-governmental organizations (NGOs).
- Legal Framework: To ensure the safety and welfare of beggars, anti-beggary laws have been implemented in several jurisdictions to modify and discourage the act of begging.
FAQ’s
Q. What is a smile scheme?
Ans- This comprehensive scheme encompasses various welfare measures for both transgender individuals and those involved in begging, with a particular emphasis on rehabilitation, medical facilities, counseling, education, skill development, economic connections, and other related areas. With the support of.
Q. What is the full form of a smile?
Ans- Scheme of Support for Marginalized Individuals for Livelihood and Enterprise (SMILE)
Conclusion
Beggars and other unfortunate persons are assisted by the ‘SMILE Scheme’. It gives them an avenue for sustaining themselves. There are things like business seminars, financial aid, and job training available. The goal is to end the poverty cycle. The intention is for people to become self-sufficient and no longer require assistance. People have alternatives when it comes to learning skills and finding work, so they won’t always struggle. These kinds of initiatives can build a more equitable society where more individuals are able to live fulfilling lives.
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