Economic Inclusion Initiatives Promote Entrepreneurship, Livelihoods and Rehabilitation Among Marginalised Communities

The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, via its Economic Inclusion Division, is implementing economic inclusion and rehabilitation measures for marginalised groups. Key initiatives include the Venture Capital Fund for Scheduled Castes (VCF-SC), which has a corpus of Rs 750 crore and has approved Rs 613.02 crore for 145 companies as of May 2026. The Ambedkar Social Innovation and Incubation Mission (ASIIM) under VCF-SC supports young SC researchers with funds up to Rs 30 lakh. Additionally, the Venture Capital Fund for Backward Classes (VCF-BC) with a corpus of Rs 200 crore has approved Rs 142.88 crore for 31 companies. Furthermore, under the SMILE Scheme, over Rs 46 crore has been released for the comprehensive rehabilitation of persons engaged in begging.