CMEGP — Up to ₹17.5L Subsidy for Maharashtra Youth Ventures — Frequently Asked Questions

The Chief Minister Employment Generation Programme is a Maharashtra government scheme that helps unemployed youth in the state establish their own enterprises. It was created through a Government Resolution dated 1 August 2019 and is implemented and monitored by the Directorate of Industries, under the state's Industries Department. Delivery on the ground happens through District Industries Centres, the Maharashtra State Khadi and Village Industries Boards and participating banks.

It depends on your sector. A manufacturing project can be costed at up to ₹50 lakh, while service businesses, agro-based and primary agro-processing units, e-vehicle based goods transport and other eligible ventures are capped at ₹20 lakh. Besides the bank term loan, the margin money subsidy can go as high as ₹17.5 lakh at the most favourable combination of category and location.

The rate is decided by your applicant category and by whether the unit is in an urban or rural area. General category applicants get 15% in urban locations and 25% in rural ones. Special category applicants — SC, ST, women, ex-servicemen, differently abled, VJNT, OBC and minority — get 25% in urban locations and 35% in rural ones.

Yes. Every beneficiary contributes between 5% and 10% of the project cost. The bank finances the remaining portion as a term loan. That combination of a bank loan with a state subsidy is what makes the scheme accessible to founders who do not have large savings behind them.

You need to be an unemployed young person in Maharashtra, or someone willing to establish a new venture, aged between 18 and 45 years. Applicants from special categories get a 5-year relaxation on the upper age limit. There is no annual income criterion for you, your family, your parents or your guardian, and the scheme is open to both men and women regardless of marital status.

Education matters only for larger projects. If your project cost goes above ₹10 lakh, you must have passed at least the 7th standard. If it goes above ₹25 lakh, the requirement rises to a 10th standard pass.

No. CMEGP runs on a rolling basis, so there is no fixed closing date — the online application window on the official portal stays open and applications are processed by the district committees as they come in.

Applications are made online at https://maha-cmegp.gov.in. After submission, the District Level Scrutiny and Coordination Sub-Committee scrutinises your application and prepares a primary list, which the District Level Task Force Committee then approves. Approved applications go to participating banks for loan sanction, after which you complete Entrepreneurship Development Programme training, the loan is disbursed, and the bank claims the margin money subsidy from the General Manager, DIC. The Head Office approves the claim and the nodal bank releases the subsidy, which is finally re-appropriated into your loan account after three successful years of activity and timely repayment.

No. The support comes as a bank term loan plus a government margin money subsidy that is treated as a grant-in-aid. Neither the bank nor the state takes a shareholding in your venture, so your ownership stays entirely with you.

The eligibility criteria laid down for CMEGP revolve around age, employment status and educational qualification. DPIIT recognition or MSME/Udyam registration is not among the stated requirements for the scheme.