Manipur govt warns against fraud in start-up scheme applications

Imphal: The Government of Manipur has issued a public advisory urging citizens to remain alert against unauthorized individuals and groups who are misleading applicants in the name of facilitating the Manipur Start-Up Scheme.

In an official notification, the Director of the Planning Department, Dr. RK Radhesana Devi, clarified that applicants must not pay any fees to apply for the Chief Minister’s Entrepreneur Support Scheme (CMESS) or the Manipur Start-Up Scheme.

She stated that the entire application process is completely free of cost and that no private agent, individual, or organization has the authority to collect money for submission or processing of applications.

The Planning Department urged all eligible and interested entrepreneurs to submit their applications only through official channels notified by the government.

With this notice, the government aims to prevent aspiring entrepreneurs from falling victim to fraudsters and to ensure full transparency in the implementation of the Manipur Start-Up Scheme.

The program seeks to empower the youth of Manipur to become job creators by promoting an entrepreneurial and innovation-driven ecosystem.

The Manipur Start-Up Scheme operated for five years, starting from 1 January 2018 and ending on 31 December 2021.

Under the scheme’s Stand-Up category, eligible applicants can receive financial assistance of up to Rs 100 lakhs from financial institutions.

So far, authorities have identified around 6,498 beneficiaries for financial support, and approximately 5,041 of them have already received the assistance.

While the profitability of individual business units may vary with market conditions, a recent report states that about 4,719 units are currently operating smoothly.