Economics Extended Essay

Candidate Code:

Topic: Development(Improvement in living standards of living

standard of street vendor)

Research question: “To what extent is the Pradhan Mantri

SAVNidhi scheme being effective in improving the living

standards in terms of increase in their income and change in

the consumption, health and education expenditure, and the

level of debt of the street vendors of C-Scheme and

Mansorovar from 2021-2022?”

Word Count: 4020

Introduction 3

Worthiness of investigation 6

Research Methodology 7

Analysis and Discussion 9

Income Indicator 10

Change in Consumer Expenditure 18

Health Indicator 23

Education Indicator 28

Indebtedness 30

Conclusion 34

Bibliography 36

Websites 36

Article 36

Books 40

Report 43

Journal 44

Appendices 45

Appendix 1: General questionnaire given to the beneficiaries, C-Scheme and Mansarovar 45

Appendix 2: Sample Response 1 47

Appendix 3: Sample Response 2 49

1
Appendix 4: Collected data on street vendors of C-Scheme 51

Appendix 5: Colleted data on street vendors of Mansarovar 54

Appendix 6: Income of the beneficiaries in C-Scheme 57

Appendix 7: Income of the beneficiaries in Mansarovar 59

Appendix 8: Average Change in income in C-Scheme and Mansarovar (%) 62

Appendix 9: Average Change in income in C-Scheme and Mansarovar (₹) 62

Appendix 10: Change in Expenditure on consumer durable goods, C-Scheme 63

Appendix 11: Change in Expenditure on consumer durable goods, Mansarovar 63

Appendix 12: High Income group savings pre and post scheme in C-Scheme 63

Appendix 13: Change in Income vs Change in Expenditure on food in C-Scheme 64

Appendix 14: Change in Income vs Change in Expenditure on food in Mansarovar 67

Appendix 15: Number of sick leaves taken before and PMSAVNY, C-Scheme and

Mansarovar 70

Appendix 16: Change in Enrollment pre and post scheme, C-Scheme and Mansarovar 70

Appendix 17: Total Indebtedness level pre and post scheme, C-Scheme and Mansarovar 72

Appendix 18: Interview Transcript of C-Scheme street vendor (Translated from the local

language to English) 74

Appendix 19: Interview transcrip with Municipality officer (Translated from local language

to English) 76

Table of Figure
2
Table 1: Change in Income of street vendors due to PMSAVNY, C-Scheme 10

Table 2: Change in Income of street vendors due to PMSAVNY, Mansarovar 11

Table of Charts

Chart 1: Comparative Change in Income of a street vendor (%) 12

Chart 2: Comparative Change in Income of a street vendor (₹) 13

Chart 3: Change in Consumer expenditure pre and post PMSAVNY, C-Scheme 17

Chart 4: Change in Consumer expenditure pre and post PMSAVNY, Mansarovar 17

Chart 5: High income group average savings (%) 20

Chart 6: Change in expenditure on food vs Change in Income in C-Scheme 23

Chart 7: Change in expenditure on food vs Change in Income in Mansarovar 24

Chart 8: No. of sick leaves taken 26

Chart 9: No. of children enrolled in a school 28

Chart 10: Inbedtness in C-Scheme and Mansarovar pre and post PMSAVNY 31

3
 75

Introduction

The informal sector employs about 81% of the India labor market and street vending accounts

for about 14% of the urban informal employment.1 Street vendor is “a person who offers goods

or services for sale to the public without having a permanently built structure”. 2 These poor,

marginalized street vendors serving in vulnerable sectors haven’t yet received legal legitimacy. 3

A major reason for this is difficulty in having access to formal credit. 4 Opportunities of self

employment and poverty alleviation5 can be achieved through financial inclusion and inclusive

growth.6 However, easy access to formal credit institutions has always been the biggest hurdle

because without sufficient credit, their scarce trading resources quickly run out. 7 Furthermore,

1 "A. Samarpitha, et al.pdf". 2023 https://www.ijcmas.com/8-11-2019/A. Samarpitha, et al.pdf. Accessed 10

January 2023.
2 “Defining Street Vendors – National Association of Street Vendors of India – NASVI.” Nasvinet.org, 2023,
nasvinet.org/defining-street-vendors/. Accessed 9 Jan. 2023.
3 Bhowmik, Sharit, and Debdulal Saha. FINANCIAL ACCESSIBILITY of the STREET VENDORS in INDIA: CASES
of INCLUSION and EXCLUSION a Study Conducted By. 2011. Accessed 10 January 2023.
4 Kumari, Pinki. (2015). Issues and Challenges for Street Vendors in Delhi. SSRN Electronic Journal.
10.2139/ssrn.2779343. Accessed 10 January 2023.
5 “Reserve Bank of India - Reports.” Rbi.org.in, 2020, www.rbi.org.in/Scripts/PublicationReportDetails.aspx?
UrlPage=&ID=1154. Accessed 9 Jan. 2023.
6 "Financial Inclusion Overview". 2023 https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/financialinclus
ion/overview#:~:text=Financial inclusion means that individuals,a responsible and sustainable way. Accessed 10
January 2023.
7 Saha, Debdulal, and Phd Scholar. CONDITIONS of “DECENT WORKING LIFE” of STREET VENDORS in
MUMBAI.
4
these street vendors are often easy targets for municipalities and policemen 8 and often have to

indulge in bribery to resume their trade.9

Furthermore, the pandemic worsened the problems for street vendors initially 10 and the economy

fell into a recession.11 For the recovery of the economy, a fiscal stimulus package worth 6.28 12

crore was released and policies such as the Pradhan Mantri SAVNidhi yojana were enacted

which is a special micro credit facility scheme for street vendors specifically 13 and aims to

benefit 50 lakh street vendors in India with budget allocation of 5,000 crore. 14 Up to ₹10,000 can

be availed with an interest subsidy at 7%.15

However, the effectiveness of the scheme has been debated. Through a study conducted, it is

estimated that over 40% of the street vendors were not even aware of the scheme and over 85%

of the people didn’t receive the Letter of Recommendation from their Municipality 16 which is

8 "Dr.-Varun-Sharma-JLSR.pdf". 2023 https://thelawbrigade.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/ 05/Dr.-Varun-Sharma-

JLSR.pdf. Accessed 10 January 2023.
9 Singh, Harshraj. “Street Vendors Forced to Pay Bribe to Station Carts Waiting for Vending Zones.” Hindustan
Times, Hindustan Times, 24 May 2015, www.hindustantimes.com/punjab/street-vendors-forced-to-pay-bribe-to-
station-carts-waiting-for-vending-zones/story-WI04PSdQglZvK1ilq60WVJ.html. Accessed 9 Jan. 2023.
10 Banerji, Annie. “FEATURE-Indian Street Vendors “Shattered” as Coronavirus Wrecks Trade.” U.S., 21 Sept.
2020, www.reuters.com/article/healthcoronavirus-india-workers-idUSL8N2GB44R. Accessed 6 Jan. 2023.
11 Bhattacharya, Payal. “Explained: How Indian Economy Stumbled, Recovered since Lockdown.” The Times of
India, Times Of India, 24 Mar. 2021, timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/one-year-of-covid-
lockdown-how-indian-economy-dealt-with-the-virus/articleshow/81666829.cms. Accessed 9 Jan. 2023.
12 Special Correspondent. “Govt. Unveils ₹6.28 Lakh Cr Stimulus Post Second COVID Wave.” Thehindu.com, 28
June 2021, www.thehindu.com/business/Economy/nirmala-sitharaman-unveils-new-covid-recovery-package-
expands-credit-relief/article35020572.ece. Accessed 1 Jan. 2023.
13 “Login - PM SVA Nidhi.” Mohua.gov.in, 2023, pmsvanidhi.mohua.gov.in/LoginSecondLoanTerm. Accessed 2
Jan. 2023.
14 NDTV. “Rs 5,000 Crore Credit for Street Vendors, 50 Lakh to Benefit: Government.” NDTV.com, 14 May 2020,
www.ndtv.com/india-news/coronavirus-lockdown-rs-5-000-crore-special-credit-facility-for-street-vendors-50-lakh-
to-benefit-government-2228811. Accessed 2 Jan. 2023.
15 “PM SVAnidhi.” Mohua.gov.in, 2014, www.pmsvanidhi.mohua.gov.in/Home/Schemes. Accessed 10 Jan. 2023.
16 Rana, Ratika. “Survey Shows Only 11.5% Street Vendors Benefit from PM Credit Scheme.”
Thelogicalindian.com, The Logical Indian, 4 Oct. 2021, thelogicalindian.com/inclusivity/street-vendors-31045.
Accessed 3 Jan. 2023.
5
needed to avail the benefits of the scheme. The study conducted by IGSSS indicates that only

11% of the street vendors actually benefited from the scheme.17

Hence, to investigate further and gain more knowledge about the impact of the policy, the

research question-“To what extent is the Pradhan Mantri SAVNidhi scheme being effective

in improving the living standards in terms of increase in their income and change in the

consumption, health and education expenditure, and the level of debt of the street vendors

of C-Scheme and Mansorovar from 2021-2022?” was created.

I used established models such as the Kuznet curve18, Harrod Domar growth model19 to

analyze the impact of the scheme and its shortcomings while employing theories like Critical

minimum effort theory20, Unbalanced growth theory21, Big push theory22, to all the

observations I made as I dived deeper into the study of PMSAVNY scheme.

17 D’Cruz, Adrian. “Only 11% of Vulnerable Street Vendors Benefitted from PM Credit Scheme: Survey.”
IndiaSpend, Indiaspend, 15 Sept. 2021, www.indiaspend.com/governance/only-11-of-vulnerable-street-vendors-
benefitted-from-pm-credit-scheme-survey-774968. Accessed 7 Jan. 2023.
18 https://www.facebook.com/thoughtcodotcom. “Understanding Kuznets Curve: The Basis for Trickle-down
Theory.” ThoughtCo, 2019, www.thoughtco.com/kuznets-curve-in-economics-1146122. Accessed 19 Jan. 2023.
19 English, An, et al. The Harrod-Domar Growth Model the Harrod Model. 1900.
20ECONOMICS Paper12: Economic Growth and Development -I Module 35: Big Push Theory and Critical

Minimum Effort Subject ECONOMICS Paper No and Title 12: Economic Growth and Development -I Module No

and Title 35: Big Push Theory and Critical Minimum Effort Module Tag ECO_P12_M35. Accessed 10 Jan. 2023.

21"Theory of Unbalanced Growth". 2023 https://acaneretuedutr.weebly.com/uploads/9/0/1/5/

9015786/theory_of_unbalanced_growth.pdf. Accessed 18 February 2023.
22Big Push Theory by Rosenstein Rodan and Economic Development: Definition and Explanation. Accessed 19

Jan. 2023.
6
Worthiness of investigation

Former UN Secretary General Kofi Annon said that micro credit facilities have been a “weapon

against poverty and hunger”23 and “can change people’s lives for better”.24 The founder of

Grammen bank, Mohammad Yunus also emphasized that poverty is “created by the structures of

the society, and the policies pursued by the society”.25 The belief is that through micro credit, a

virtuous cycle can be created: “low income, injection of credit, investment, more income, more

savings, more investment, more income”.26

Studies by Hashemi27, Montgomery28 do suggest that microfinance can be a game changer in

reducing poverty. However some studies like Tessie 29

, Banerjee30, Altay31 suggests that

“microfinance approach does not offer sufficient solutions reduce to poverty”. 32 The study by

Daley-Harris and Zimmerman33 suggests that if microfinance is used for daily consumption then

23“Microfinance: Good for the Poor?” Africa Renewal, 19 June 2015, www.un.org/africarenewal/magazine/august-
2015/microfinance-good-poor. Accessed 19 Jan. 2023.
24 “MICROCREDIT EXTENDS SAME RIGHTS to POOR as ARE AVAILABLE to EVERYONE ELSE, SAYS
SECRETARY-GENERAL in MESSAGE to LAUNCH CEREMONY for INTERNATIONAL YEAR | UN Press.”
Un.org, 18 Nov. 2004, press.un.org/en/2004/sgsm9601.doc.htm. Accessed 19 Jan. 2023.
25“Muhammad Yunus Quotes (Author of Banker to the Poor).” Goodreads.com, 2023,
www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/1254841.Muhammad_Yunus. Accessed 19 Jan. 2023.
26“History of Grameen Bank | Www.grameenresearch.org.” Grameenresearch.org, 2013,
grameenresearch.org/history-of-grameen-bank/. Accessed 19 Jan. 2023.
27 Littlefield, Elizabeth, et al. Is Microfinance an Effective Strategy to Reach the Millennium Development Goals?
2003. Accessed 19 Jan. 2023.
28 Weiss, John, and Heather Montgomery. “Great Expectations: Microfinance and Poverty Reduction in Asia and
Latin America.” ResearchGate, Taylor & Francis (Routledge), Feb. 2005,
www.researchgate.net/publication/24085763_Great_Expectations_Microfinance_and_Poverty_Reduction_in_Asia_
and_Latin_America. Accessed 17 Feb. 2023.
29 Swope, Tessie. “Microfinance and Poverty Alleviation.” Rollins Undergraduate Research Journal, vol. 2, 2010,
scholarship.rollins.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1006&context=rurj.
30 Banerjee, Abhijit V., et al. “The Miracle of Microfinance? Evidence from a Randomized Evaluation.” SSRN
Electronic Journal, 2013, https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2250500. Accessed 24 July 2019. Accessed 11 Jan. 2023.
31 Altay, Asuman. The Challenge for Global Women Poverty: Microfinance (or Microcredit) as a Solution for
Women Poverty in Turkey. 2007. Accessed 13 Jan. 2023.
32 IBID
33 Daley-Harris, Sam & Zimmerman, Jamie. (2009). 'Microfinance does not usually serve the very poor, for whom
it can represent a route into debt rather than a way out of poverty.'. Enterprise Development and Microfinance. 20.
79-85. 10.3362/1755-1986.2009.010. Accessed 2 December 2022.
7
it would rather increase the debt for the borrowers while fdfssdfds 34 and Camilla Johansson35

would argue that through micro-credits, poor people can build up their business and become

more productive, having a spillover effect on the country and raising the GDP.

Through this research, the aim is to have greater insight on whether microfinance institutions are

able to provide financial inclusion or not to street vendors and the claim of proving more credit

would empower the poor and generate higher income for the street vendors is true or not.

Additionally, another key aspect of the scheme was its role in increasing digital literacy which

had been doubted since its launch.

Research Methodology

After reading theories like the Big push model, several research papers and articles, and gone

through the UNDP development indicators36, it was determined that the Human Development

Index would be the indicator used in the investigation for measuring the changes that occured in

living standards of beneficiaries in C-Scheme and Mansarovar pre and post Prandhan Mantri

SAVNidhi yojana(PMSAVNY).

Comparative analysis between the two localities was done through modeling the changes in

income, health expenditure and education expenditure. 5 consumer durable goods selected from

the survey were used for knowing the change in the income, consumption expenditure and thus

34 Microfinance 3.0 Reconciling Sustainability with Social Outreach and Responsible Delivery. Accessed 14
December 2022.
35Johansson, Camilla, et al. Microcredit Impact on Business Performance a Minor Field Study in El Salvador.
2014.
36"Human Development Indicators (UN) • European University Institute". 2023
https://www.eui.eu/Research/Library/ResearchGuides /Economics/Statistics/DataPortal/HDR#:~:text=Human
Development Indicators published annually,the annual Human Development Report. Accessed 4 January 2023.
8
indicate a change in living standards. A correlation analysis was created to calculate the change

in street vendors debt before and after implementation of PMSAVNY.

Primary data was collected through open and close-ended interviews to 60 street vendors(30

from each locality).37 This allows for a constructive comparison between street vendors residing

in the same city but with different social and economic backgrounds. To prevent language

barrier, the questions were asked in the local language of Hindi. The Municipality heads were

interviewed for knowing the hurdles faced while implementing the scheme. Through open ended

questions, a deep understanding of various perspectives were able to be gained. However, the

municipality's political biases towards PMSAVNY may have impacted the integrity of our

results. Further, there might be a Fundamental Attribution error which is “overemphasizing

personal factors and under-estimating situational factors when explaining other people’s

behavior”.38 Through observation, it was recorded that in Mansarovar there were several

government outlets providing free ration to people belonging to low income groups hence it has

potentially reduced Mansorovar’s street vendors’ sales and total income.

37Appendix 19: Interview transcript of Municipality officer

38"12 Cognitive Biases Infographic v 4.pdf". 2023 https://www.minnstate.edu/system/working/docs/sear ch
advisory committee training/12 Cognitive Biases Infographic v 4.pdf. Accessed 20 January 2023.
9
Analysis and Discussion

HDI is a key measure in understanding the overall development of a human life. It is done

through taking into account 3 major factors that largely affect a human life: improvement in

education, healthy and long life, and standard of living. 39 The determination of whether

education has seen any substantial improvement is measured through the change in adult literacy

rate and the change in enrollment in primary, secondary and tertiary school.40 Indication of a

change in standard of living for this study conducted at a micro level is done through observing

the changes in annual income of household’s which invariably affects their ability to fulfill their

basic needs. Further, debt levels would give an indication of whether the policy would be

successful in helping escape the vicious cycle of poverty for street vendors.

39"Economics - course companion - jocelyn blink and ian dorton - second edition - oxford 2012.pdf". 2023
http://file:///Users/shreyansjuniwal/Downloads/eco nomics - course companion - jocelyn blink and ian dorton -
second edition - oxford 2012.pdf. Accessed 20 January 2023.
40 IBID
10
 Income Indicator

To analyze the results gathered more effectively and have a better understanding, 3 categories

were made based on annual income of the sample group.

Table 1: Change in Income of street vendors due to PMSAVNY, C-Scheme

Category Number of Annual Average Avg total income Avg Change in Avg

people(total Income Income of after scheme Income(₹) Change in

30 people) Bracket(₹) street enactment street street vendor Income

vendor pre- vendor(₹) (%) street

scheme vendor

Low-Income 16 0-40,000 19,800 24,354 4,554 23%

group

Middle-Income 10 40,000-80,000 57,650 66,874 9,224 16%

group

High-Income 4 80,000- 102,100 109,247 7,147 7%

group 120,0000

11
 Table 2: Change in Income of street vendors due to PMSAVNY, Mansarovar

Category Number of Annual Average Avg total Avg Change Avg

people(total Income Income street income after in Income(₹) Change in

30 people) Bracket(₹) vendor pre scheme per street Income

scheme(₹) enactment street vendor (%) per

vendor(₹) street

vendor

Low-Income 19 0-40,000 19,700 25,216 5,516 28%

group

Middle-Income 8 40,000-80,000 55,320 63,065 7,745 14%

group

High-Income 3 80,000- 100,000 106,000 6,000 6%

group 120,0000

12
Mean change in the Income of Street Vendors in C-Scheme-

( 4554 ×16)+( 9224 ×10)+(7147 × 4)

=₹ 6456.4
30

Mean change in Income of Street Vendors in Mansarovar-

(5516 ×19)+( 7745× 8)+(6000 ×3)

=₹ 6158.8
30

Chart 1: Comparative Change in Income of a street vendor(%)

13
Chart 2: Comparative Change in Income of a street vendor(₹)

Low income group:

Referring to Chart1 and 2 above, in terms of percentage change in income, the greatest benefits

were gained by the low income group (23%41 change in C-Scheme and 28%42 change in

Mansarovar). As the malls were either closed43 or people refused to go due to the spread of the

pandemic44, several of them relied on these street vendors for their basic necessities. 45 Vendors

selling fruits containing Vitamin C like lemons especially saw an increase in their demand as

41 Table1: Change in Income of street vendors due to PMSAVNY, C-Scheme

42 Table2: Change in Income of street vendors due to PMSAVNY, Mansarovar
43 News, Moneycontrol. “Coronavirus Pandemic: Govt’s Order to Shut Malls Impacts Retail Industry.”
Moneycontrol, Moneycontrol, 14 Mar. 2020, www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/coronavirus-pandemic-govts-
order-to-shut-malls-impacts-retail-industry-5034071.html. Accessed 23 Jan. 2023.
44 Dutta, Arnab. “Covid-19 Pandemic: Consumers Unwilling to Visit Malls, Says Survey.” @Bsindia, Business
Standard, 17 June 2021, www.business-standard.com/article/economy-policy/covid-19-pandemic-consumers-
unwilling-to-visit-malls-says-survey-121061800031_1.html. Accessed 23 Jan. 2023.
45Appendix 19: Interview transcript of Municipality officer
14
everyone increased their purchase of immunity raising fruits.46 Thus, helping increase the

vendors revenue and income.47

However, in terms of absolute change in income, low income groups were the least well off

( ₹4,554 income change in C-Scheme48 and ₹5,516 income change in Mansarovar49). Low

income street vendors were often immigrants 50 and thus had very limited occupational mobility

and even though most of the street vendors were able to avail full ₹ 10,000 of the micro-credit, it

seems insufficient for a drastic change for them.51 The calculations of the mean change in income

supports this as the mean change in income is less than the total amount borrowed. 52 Adhering to

the critical minimum effort theory, it is shown that the impact of stimulants is less than the

impact of shocks. This could in the long term lead them to debt traps as highlighted by the study

of Dean Karlan, Sendhil Mullainathan and Benjamin N. Roth.53 In accordance with Rosenstein-

Rodan Big Push theory, an initial big thrust to the Indian economy was needed during the

pandemic for recovery from recession and it seems that more financial support was perhaps

required.54

Middle Income group:

46IBID
47Chart3: Comparative Change in Income of a street vendor(%)
48Table1: Change in Income of street vendors due to PMSAVNY, C-Scheme
49Table2: Change in Income of street vendors due to PMSAVNY, Mansarovar
50Appendix 19: Interview transcript of Municipality officer
51IBID
52 Mean change in Income table
53Karlan, Dean, et al. “Debt Traps? Market Vendors and Moneylender Debt in India and the Philippines.” SSRN
Electronic Journal, 2018, 10.2139/ssrn.3126399. Accessed 28 Oct. 2022.
54 Sanghera, Tish. “India Enters Recession as COVID-19 Surge Hinders Recovery.” Aljazeera.com, Al Jazeera, 27
Nov. 2020, www.aljazeera.com/economy/2020/11/27/india-enters-recession-amid-resurgence-in-covid-19-cases.
Accessed 24 Jan. 2023.
15
In relative terms, the middle income group was the second most benefited from the scheme (16%

income change in C-Scheme55 and 14% change in income in C-Scheme56). However, this is a -

7%57 and -14%58 decrease in change in average income from low to middle income group. In

absolute terms though, the middle income group benefited more (₹9,22459 income increase in C-

Scheme and ₹7,74560 income increase in Mansarovar ) compared to the high income group

(₹7,14761 in C-Scheme and ₹6,00062 in Mansarovar). This suggests reduced income inequality

and can even be represented through the Kuznets curve because as the change in income(₹) has

been higher for the middle income group, the disparity in income between the middle and high

income group has decreased. Higher income would also lead to actual economic growth in the

short run for the Indian economy.

High Income group:

The high income group were the least benefited in relative terms (7% income change in C-

Scheme63 and 6% income change in Mansarovar64) which indicates that the benefits of the

scheme slows down as the income rises. However, in absolute terms they were the second most

benefited (₹7,14765 and ₹6,00066 income raise in C-Scheme and Mansarovar respectively).

These high income street vendors were already experiencing economies of scale through bulk

55Table1: Change in Income of street vendors due to PMSAVNY, C-Scheme

56Table2: Change in Income of street vendors due to PMSAVNY, Mansarovar
57Table1: Change in Income of street vendors due to PMSAVNY, C-Scheme
58Table2: Change in Income of street vendors due to PMSAVNY, Mansarovar
59Table1: Change in Income of street vendors due to PMSAVNY, C-Scheme
60Table2: Change in Income of street vendors due to PMSAVNY, Mansarovar
61Table1: Change in Income of street vendors due to PMSAVNY, C-Scheme
62Table2: Change in Income of street vendors due to PMSAVNY, Mansarovar
63Table1: Change in Income of street vendors due to PMSAVNY, C-Scheme
64Table2: Change in Income of street vendors due to PMSAVNY, Mansarovar
65Table1: Change in Income of street vendors due to PMSAVNY, C-Scheme
66Table2: Change in Income of street vendors due to PMSAVNY, Mansarovar
16
buying and thus could lower their prices while maintaining a marginal profit margin. 67 Further,

through the micro-credit, the high income street vendors formed collective groups to purchase

storage facilities.68 This increased the Price elasticity of supply as ease of storage increased. 69 As

the prices increased they were able to increase the supply of immunity boosting fruits like

Oranges and Grapefruit by a higher percentage.70

Thus, PMSAVNY has empowered the vendors through the microfinance in accordance with

Unbalanced growth theory. As the Unbalanced growth theory suggests, the best method for

escaping the cycle of poverty in underdeveloped nations is unbalanced growth.

67Appendix 19: Interview transcript of Municipality officer

68Appendix 19: Interview transcript of Municipality officer
69“6.3:PriceElasticity of Supply.” Social Sci LibreTexts, 2018,
socialsci.libretexts.org/Bookshelves/Economics/Book%3A_Economics_(Boundless)/
6%3A_Elasticity_and_its_Implications/6.3%3A_Price_Elasticity_of_Supply#:~:text=There%20are%20numerous
%20factors%20that%20impact%20the%20price%20elasticity%20of,mobility%2C%20and%20how%20costs
%20react.. Accessed 24 Jan. 2023.
70 Owens, Jack. “5 Fruits That Boost Your Immune System | the FruitGuys.” The FruitGuys, 7 Oct. 2019,
fruitguys.com/2019/10/5-fruits-that-boost-your-immune-system/. Accessed 24 Jan. 2023.
17
Correlation analysis between Total Income and Total Change in Income

C-Scheme

Total Income Total Change in Income

Low Income group 316800 30841

Middle Income group 576500 47532

High Income group 408408 34877

r= 0.992649576571

Mansarovar

Total Income Total Change in Income

Low Income group 374300 54698

Middle Income group 442560 43152

High Income group 300000 26996

r= 0.600271307772

Through the correlation analysis, it can been seen that the scheme has been more beneficial in C-

Scheme compared to Mansarovar. However, both regions saw an increase in average income.

71 Appendix 6: Income of the beneficiaries in C-Scheme

72 Appendix 7: Income of the beneficiaries in Mansarovar
18
Change in Consumer Expenditure

Chart 3: Change in Consumer expenditure pre and post PMSAVNY, C-Scheme

Chart 4: Change in Consumer expenditure pre and post PMSAVNY, Mansarovar

19
Because of an increase in their average income, beneficiaries from Mansarovar and C-Scheme

have observed a change in their spending patterns.73

73Table 1: Change in Income of street vendors due to PMSAVNY, C-Scheme and Table2: Change in Income of
street vendors due to PMSAVNY, Mansarovar
20
The YED in C-Scheme was negative, between 0 and -1, signifying that beneficiaries in C-

Scheme start to purchase less utensils as their incomes grow. The YED in Mansarovar is less

than 1 but greater than 0, highlighting that as the income of Mansarovar street vendors would

rise, they would make more purchases of utensils.74 On the other hand, the purchase of light

bulbs has seen an increase by C-Scheme vendors by 15%. These beneficiaries that had formed

groups met at the rented storages to plan and discuss their stocks and finances for the following

74 “Income Elasticity of Demand | Intelligent Economist.” Intelligent Economist, 29 Aug. 2019,

www.intelligenteconomist.com/income-elasticity-of-demand/. Accessed 24 Jan. 2023.
21
day.75 Seldom, one of them would meet with the scheme officer to avail other forms of

government financial incentives available for the small vendors in the informal sectors. This

supports Dr Karthigai Chellaswamy study which suggests that vendors seem to have “low level

of financial literacy” that keep them in the vicious cycle of poverty.76

In the short run, Mansarovar vendors have experienced an increase in their living standards.

However, in the long run, C-Scheme vendors would be better off.

Chart 5: High income group average savings (%)

75 Appendix 18: Interview Transcript of C-Scheme street vendor
76 Scholar, Research. FINANCIAL LITERACY and OTHER FACTORS MODERATING STREET VENDORS’
FINANCIAL DECISION MAKING NIKITHA NEELAPPA S Dr. KARTHIGAI PRAKASHAM CHELLASWAMY.
2022, tianjindaxuexuebao.com/dashboard/uploads/35.4MQG2.pdf, 10.17605/OSF.IO/4MQG2. Accessed 21 Jan.
2023.

22
Through primary data, it was revealed that the low to middle income group generated no savings,

the highest income group of C-Scheme had 1.78%77 savings pre PMSAVNY and 2.02% post

PMSAVNY.78 It shows that since the low income vendors still have to satisfy their basic needs,

there is a high marginal propensity to consume which means that they use a large proportion of

their income on purchasing necessities, hence no savings. 79 However, as the income increases,

MPC falls and MPS increases simply because a high proportion of money earned isn’t being

consumed and hence being saved. At the same time because of lack of collateral, financial

illiteracy and poor financial system these low income vendors are unable to invest in expansion

of their businesses. This supports the Harrod Domar growth model that states a low

investment in developing economies leads to a low level of capital stock and thus low level of

output or GDP and therefore the income remains low.80 Countries stuck in this cycle generally

77 Chart 5: High income group average savings (%)

78 IBID
79 Canbary, Zara, and Charles Grant. Economics and Finance Working Paper Series the Marginal Propensity to
Consume for Different Socio-Economic Groups. 2019. Accessed 19 Jan. 2023.
80 Harrod Domar Growth Model BA Sem vi Development Economics Code ECB-604. Accessed 8 Jan. 2023.
23
have a low savings gap. Thus, it is important for PMSAVNY to perhaps increase their lending

amount so that effective saving could be done.

Health Indicator

The change in the expenditure on food by the beneficiaries of PMSAVNY yojana would be

modeled because this would help indicate the effect this micro credit scheme has had on the

child's health and nutrition, which has been one of the key problems in India for decades.81

81 “Child Malnutrition in India: A Systemic Failure.” Downtoearth.org.in, 2014,

www.downtoearth.org.in/blog/health/child-malnutrition-in-india-a-systemic-failure-76507. Accessed 13 Feb. 2023.
24
The initiative has successfully raised the average income of street vendors of both the localities:

C-Scheme and Mansorovar.82 However, the increase in income in C-Scheme was higher than the

increase in income in Mansarovar. This invariably affects their expenditure of food. It is claimed

that there are almost 189.2 million undernourished people in India 83, the majority being women

and children.84 The major cause of malnourishment has been economic inequality which through

this scheme has reduced.85

It has been proven that health and productivity are proportionally related however, mental health

is an important part too which hasn't been measured in this study, hence a limitation.

Estimatedly, poor mental health costs $14 billion to the Indian employers each year.86

Chart 6: Average change in expenditure on food vs Change in Income, C-Scheme

82 Table 1 and Table 2 of Change in Income of Street Vendors in Mansarovar and C-Scheme
83 Tripathi, Sachin. 750|Sachin Tripathi HUNGER and FOOD SECURITY in INDIA:-A REALITY CHECK vis-à-
vis SOME PRAGMATIC SOLUTIONS towards ACHIEVING the UNITED NATIONS SUSTAINABLE
DEVELOPMENT GOALS of QUALITY EDUCATION and RESPONSIBLE CONSUMPTION and PRODUCTION
HUNGER and FOOD SECURITY in INDIA:-A REALITY CHECK VIS- À-VIS SOME PRAGMATIC SOLUTIONS
towards ACHIEVING the UNITED NATIONS SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS of QUALITY
EDUCATION and RESPONSIBLE CONSUMPTION and PRODUCTION. Vol. 20, no. 1, 2021, pp. 1750–1753,
www.ejmanager.com/mnstemps/218/218-1615629456.pdf?t=1674569148, 10.17051/ilkonline.2021.01.184.
Accessed 24 Jan. 2023.
84 IBID
85 Singh, Shrikant, et al. “Socio-Economic Inequality in Malnutrition among Children in India: An Analysis of 640
Districts from National Family Health Survey (2015–16).” International Journal for Equity in Health, vol. 18, no. 1,
Dec. 2019, equityhealthj.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12939-019-1093-0, 10.1186/s12939-019-1093-0.
Accessed 24 Jan. 2023.
86 PTI. “Mental Health Issues Cost Indian Firms $14 Billion a Year, Says Deloitte.” Thehindu.com, 8 Sept. 2022,
www.thehindu.com/business/Industry/mental-health-issues-cost-indian-firms-14-bn-a-year-says-deloitte/
article65866768.ece#:~:text=Poor%20mental%20health%20amongst%20employees,after%20surveying%20almost
%204%2C000%20workers.. Accessed 24 Jan. 2023.
25
Chart 7: Average change in expenditure on food vs Change in Income, Mansarovar

26
Chart 6 and 7 illustrates that as the average change in income rises, the change in expenditure on

food starts to decline in both the localities, however, the rate of decrease is higher in Mansarovar

compared to C-Scheme. Initially, the monetary help provided by the scheme was used especially

by the low income group vendors to purchase their basic necessities like food. 87 However, as the

average income raises, the credit facility is used in other aspects as the need for food is fulfilled.

This explains the reason for the change in expenditure to goes further in negative as income

group changes from low to middle to high. In both the localities, the greatest decrease in

expenditure on food is done by the high income group.

However, it is to be noted that this is an average increase which means that there were some

street vendors whose income fell and their expenditure on food fell too, as their spending pattern

perhaps on nutrition indicates.

87 Appendix 18: Interview Transcript of C-Scheme street vendor

27
Chart 8: No. of sick leaves taken pre and post PMSAVNY, C-Scheme and Mansarovar

Chart 8 demonstrates that there is a higher decrease in leaves taken in C-Scheme of 28.57% 88

compared to 15.63%89 of Mansorovar. As previously mentioned, both the street vendors in these

localities may have started spending more on healthy food hence decline in sick leaves however,

the vendors in C-Scheme spent more on food expenditure, thus it can be reasoned that their

health improved more so the percentage decrease in sick leaves taken is higher in C-Scheme

compared to Mansarovar. However, a limitation of this study is that during this time, India was

witnessing COVID-19 pandemic and so the amount of leaves is also affected by other factors

such as whether some street vendors contracted a disease or not. Hence, it is difficult to analyze,

to what extent has the change in income affected the health expenditure and the number of leaves

taken by the beneficiaries.

88 Appendix 15: Number of sick leaves taken before and PMSAVNY, C-Scheme and Mansarovar
89 IBID
28
However, overall it can be concluded that the scheme has been effective in improving health thus

increasing the living standards.

Education Indicator

One of the indicators of a developing economy is its rising average number of years of schooling

received by students as in the long run it impacts the productivity of labor.90 Through
90 Susanto, Joko. “Education, Labour Productivity and Industrial Performance: Evidence of Indonesia.”
ResearchGate,unknown,2014,
www.researchgate.net/publication/335135946_Education_Labour_Productivity_and_Industrial_Performance_Evide
nce_of_Indonesia. Accessed 24 Jan. 2023.
29
PMSAVNY, street vendors of both the localities have seen a raise in their average income,

albeit, street vendors of C-Scheme have shown a higher increase compared to street vendors of

Mansarovar. 91

Chart 9: No. of children enrolled in a school pre and post PMSAVNY, C-Scheme and

Mansarovar

Chart 9 shows there is a decrease in the student enrollment for children in C-Scheme and

Mansarovar even though the family’s income has increased. Through an interview it was

gathered that the general education level of street vendors in C-Scheme were higher than that of

vendors in Mansarovar. Hence, C-Scheme vendors always had a belief in educating their

children. This change of mental attitude was perhaps a reason the enrollment in C-Scheme was

91Table 1 and Table 2 of Change in Income of Street Vendors in Mansarovar and C-Scheme
30
higher pre and post pandemic. However, as the effects of the pandemic worsened, parents

worried about their child's safety so even though their financial status has improved through the

scheme, the enrollment decreased. The rate of decrease was higher in Mansarovar -72.73% 92

compared to C-Scheme -50%.93 Another reason for decline in enrollment was because several

government schools were shut down due to the pandemic. 94 Further, as the online schooling took

place, many of these street vendors couldn’t afford electronic devices for their children and

hence had no other option but to unenroll their children from schools.95 Moreover, even after

reopening of the schools, parents were skeptical and afraid of sending their children back to

school due to health concerns.96 Therefore, PMSAVNY has not impacted the living standards of

the beneficiaries through education indicators much in both the localities.

Indebtedness

The study conducted by Sharit K. Bhowmik and Debdulal Saha shows that street vendors’

“expenses far outweigh their earnings and they are always stuck in a debt trap”. 97 As Lina

Martinez study shows, repayment of debt “absorb a large share of their income and perpetuate

their indebtedness”.98 Additionally, as shown by the study of Dean Karlan, Benjamin N North

92 Appendix 16: Change in Enrollment pre and post scheme, C-Scheme and Mansarovar
93 IBID
94 Law, Abhishek. “Nearly 20,000 Schools Closed in India in 2021-22 due to Covid, Staff Strength Also Dropped:
Ministry of Education Report.” Thehindubusinessline.com, 3 Nov. 2022,
www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/education/nearly-20000-schools-closed-in-india-in-2021-22-due-to-covid-
staff-strength-also-dropped-ministry-of-education-report/article66091511.ece. Accessed 24 Jan. 2023.
95Kundu, Protiva. “Indian Education Can’t Go Online – Only 8% of Homes with Young Members Have Computer
with Net Link.” Scroll.in, Scroll.in, 5 May 2020, scroll.in/article/960939/indian-education-cant-go-online-only-8-of-
homes-with-school-children-have-computer-with-net-link. Accessed 13 Feb. 2023.
96Appendix 19: Interview transcript of Municipality officer
97 Saha, Debdulal, and Phd Scholar. CONDITIONS of “DECENT WORKING LIFE” of STREET VENDORS in
MUMBAI. Accessed 2 Jan. 2023.
98 Martinez, Lina, and Juan David. “Debt Portfolios of the Poor: The Case of Street Vendors in Cali, Colombia.”
ResearchGate, unknown, May 2018,
www.researchgate.net/publication/325255721_Debt_Portfolios_of_the_Poor_The_Case_of_Street_Vendors_in_Cali
31
and Sendhil Mullainathan, “most vendors fell back into debt within six weeks”.99 Further vendors

aren’t able to repay back the loans and their debt has only increased.100

Chart 10: Inbedtness pre and post PMSAVNY, C-Scheme and Mansarovar

A major reason for the initiation of PMSAVNY was to help ease the liquidity issues faced by

street vendors as the credit of up to ₹10,000 helped restart or expand their business, hence

providing them with higher working capital than before.

Through PMSAVNY, the change in debt level of C-Scheme street vendors was 1.07% 101 while

for street vendors in Mansarovar it was -0.72%.102 The debt level decreased in C-Scheme because

of several factors, for example most of their income in capital widening to raise their productive

_Colombia. Accessed 24 Jan. 2023.

99 Karlan, Dean, et al. “Debt Traps? Market Vendors and Moneylender Debt in India and the Philippines.”
American Economic Review: Insights, vol. 1, no. 1, 1 June 2019, pp. 27–42,
www.aeaweb.org/articles?id=10.1257/aeri.20180030, 10.1257/aeri.20180030. Accessed 24 Jan. 2023.
100Appendix 1: Interview transcript with Municipality officer
101Appendix 17: Total Indebtedness level pre and post scheme, C-Scheme and Mansarovar
102IBID
32
potential. Instead of taking a loan at an interest rate of 10% or 11% which they usually used to

get from other lenders103, now they were getting the loan at only 7% interest rate. 104 Further, the

timely payment of loans gave them interest subsidy at the same time. The vendors started to

incentivize more digital transactions which gave them monthly cashbacks in increasing amounts

that helped them pay off their previous debts.105 This also indirectly would successfully bring

larger number of people into formal financial markets. However, the debt level increased in

Mansarovar because a higher proportion of income was spent on day to day necessities instead of

growing their business to provide financial stability.

There are other trends that can be observed though the graph. The highest indebted vendors in

both the localities belong in the middle income group. The low income group vendors took

smaller loans and hence were able to much easily repay them while the high income street

vendors had bigger established businesses meaning sales were much more easily flowing in so

they still were able to repay back most of the loans. However, most of the middle income group

vendors were young106 and didn’t have enough business experience to handle the repayment of

loans properly107, hence they faced highest indebtedness.

For the low income street vendors, the debts would quickly increase. This is because many of

them used the credit from PMSAVNY to pay off their previous debts instead of using the

financial support for capital deepening or widening. This means that they might purchase new

loans from the local money market at a higher interest rate to pay off the current micro-credit and
103Appendix 19: Interview transcript of Municipality officer
104“PM Street Vendor’s AtmaNirbhar Nidhi (PM SVANidhi)| National Portal of India.” India.gov.in, 2020,
www.india.gov.in/spotlight/pm-street-vendors-atmanirbhar-nidhi-pm-svanidhi. Accessed 24 Jan. 2023.
105Appendix 19: Interview transcript of Municipality officer
106Appendix 18: Interview transcrip of C-Scheme street vendor
107 IBID
33
thus they are now perpetually stuck in a debt trap. Hence, PMSAVNY has not been very

successful in reducing street vendors' debt levels and thus not improving their living standards by

much.

Conclusion

The study was conducted to explore “To what extent is the Pradhan Mantri SAVNidhi

scheme being effective in improving the living standards in terms of increase in their

income and change in the consumption, health and education expenditure and debt level of

the street vendors of Jaipur from 2021 to 2022?” The micro-credit scheme increased the
34
average income of street vendors in both the localities( ₹ 6456.4 in C-Scheme and ₹ 6158.8 in

Mansarovar). However their spending patterns differed. The YEDMansarovar 0.00008675530 is

greater than YEDC-Scheme -0.0000391440 for utensils. In C-Scheme, the beneficiary vendors

successfully used the credit for capital widening by renting storage facilities while among

Mansarovar beneficiaries, additional income was spent on necessities. High income street

vendors of C-Scheme were also able to save a higher proportion of their income than pre

schemes(2.02% compared to 1.78%). Another benefit of PMSAVNY was the decline in sick

leaves taken, due to an increase in the spending on healthcare, perhaps the vendors purchased

more of nutritional food. However, the enrollment decreased in C-Scheme by -50% and in

Mansarovar by -72.73% . This is because of schools closing or parents being anxious to send

their children to school during pandemic, so thus it may be safely concluded that despite of

change in education expenditure, PMSAVNY may not be sufficient to improve the living

standards through improvement in enrollment. Additionally, the debt level reduced for C-

Scheme by 1.07% while increased by 0.72% in Mansarovar.

Street vendors of Mansarovar may only see an improvement in their living standards in the short

run while street vendors of C-Scheme because of increase capital investment may enjoy higher

living standards even in the long run. The study is supported by H.M.W.A Hearth who states that

it is vital for the government to not just provide micro-credit loans facilities, but rather also focus

on providing financial literacy to make street vendors financially sound decisions.108

108 Herath, H.M.W.A. “MICROFINANCE Theory and Practice.” ResearchGate, S. Godage & Brothers (Pvt) Ltd,
661/675, P. de S. Kularathe Mawatha, Colombo 10, Sri Lanka, 12 Sept. 2018,
www.researchgate.net/publication/335757487_MICROFINANCE_Theory_and_Practice. Accessed 24 Jan. 2023.
35
However, there are few limitations of this study due to personal or political bias of street vendors

and Municipality heads. Further, the study on health expenditure is impacted by factors such as

beneficiaries not able to go to hospitals which started to only carter COVID-19 patients at the

height of the pandemic. Additionally, several schools were ordered to be shut by the government

thus impacting the education expenditure analysis.

Therefore, after exploring the research question it can be stated that in both the localities, the

highest impact has been felt on income and debt levels rather than health and education levels.

Thus, it can be concluded that in the long run, micro-credit facilities would help the street

vendors.

Bibliography

Websites

Article

● "12 Cognitive Biases Infographic v 4.pdf". 2023

https://www.minnstate.edu/system/working/docs/sear ch advisory committee

training/12 Cognitive Biases Infographic v 4.pdf. Accessed 20 January 2023.

36
● Bhattacharya, Payal. “Explained: How Indian Economy Stumbled, Recovered

since Lockdown.” The Times of India, Times Of India, 24 Mar. 2021,

timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/one-year-of-covid-

lockdown-how-indian-economy-dealt-with-the-virus/articleshow/81666829.cms.

Accessed 9 Jan. 2023.

● Big Push Theory by Rosenstein Rodan and Economic Development: Definition

and Explanation. Accessed 19 Jan. 2023.

● Dutta, Arnab. “Covid-19 Pandemic: Consumers Unwilling to Visit Malls, Says

Survey.” @Bsindia, Business Standard, 17 June 2021, www.business-

standard.com/article/economy-policy/covid-19-pandemic-consumers-unwilling-

to-visit-malls-says-survey-121061800031_1.html. Accessed 23 Jan.

2023.“Defining Street Vendors – National Association of Street Vendors of India

– NASVI.” Nasvinet.org, 2023, nasvinet.org/defining-street-vendors/. Accessed 9

Jan. 2023.

● ECONOMICS Paper12: Economic Growth and Development -I Module 35: Big

Push Theory and Critical Minimum Effort Subject ECONOMICS Paper No and

Title 12: Economic Growth and Development -I Module No and Title 35: Big

Push Theory and Critical Minimum Effort Module Tag ECO_P12_M35. Accessed

10 Jan. 2023.

● English, An, et al. The Harrod-Domar Growth Model the Harrod Model. 1900.

Accessed 16 November 2022.

● “History of Grameen Bank | Www.grameenresearch.org.” Grameenresearch.org,

2013, grameenresearch.org/history-of-grameen-bank/. Accessed 19 Jan. 2023.

37
● “Impact of COVID-19 on Street Vendors in India: Status and Steps for Advocacy

| WIEGO.” Wiego.org, 2020, www.wiego.org/impact-covid-19-street-vendors-

india-status-and-steps-advocacy. Accessed 9 Feb. 2023.

● “Income Elasticity of Demand | Intelligent Economist.” Intelligent Economist, 29

Aug. 2019, www.intelligenteconomist.com/income-elasticity-of-demand/.

Accessed 24 Jan. 2023.

● "Financial Inclusion Overview". 2023

https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/financialinclus

ion/overview#:~:text=Financial inclusion means that individuals,a responsible

and sustainable way. Accessed 10 January 2023.

● Harrod Domar Growth Model BA Sem vi Development Economics Code ECB-

604. Accessed 17 November 2022.

● NDTV. “Rs 5,000 Crore Credit for Street Vendors, 50 Lakh to Benefit:

Government.” NDTV.com, 14 May 2020, www.ndtv.com/india-news/coronavirus-

lockdown-rs-5-000-crore-special-credit-facility-for-street-vendors-50-lakh-to-

benefit-government-2228811. Accessed 2 Jan. 2023.

● News, Moneycontrol. “Coronavirus Pandemic: Govt’s Order to Shut Malls

Impacts Retail Industry.” Moneycontrol, Moneycontrol, 14 Mar. 2020,

www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/coronavirus-pandemic-govts-order-to-

shut-malls-impacts-retail-industry-5034071.html. Accessed 23 Jan. 2023.

● Owens, Jack. “5 Fruits That Boost Your Immune System | the FruitGuys.” The

FruitGuys, 7 Oct. 2019, fruitguys.com/2019/10/5-fruits-that-boost-your-immune-

system/. Accessed 24 Jan. 2023.

38
● PTI. “Mental Health Issues Cost Indian Firms $14 Billion a Year, Says Deloitte.”

Thehindu.com, 8 Sept. 2022, www.thehindu.com/business/Industry/mental-health-

issues-cost-indian-firms-14-bn-a-year-says-deloitte/

article65866768.ece#:~:text=Poor%20mental%20health%20amongst

%20employees,after%20surveying%20almost%204%2C000%20workers..

Accessed 24 Jan. 2023.

● Rana, Ratika. “Survey Shows Only 11.5% Street Vendors Benefit from PM Credit

Scheme.” Thelogicalindian.com, The Logical Indian, 4 Oct. 2021,

thelogicalindian.com/inclusivity/street-vendors-31045. Accessed 3 Jan. 2023.

● Sanghera, Tish. “India Enters Recession as COVID-19 Surge Hinders Recovery.”

Aljazeera.com, Al Jazeera, 27 Nov. 2020,

www.aljazeera.com/economy/2020/11/27/india-enters-recession-amid-

resurgence-in-covid-19-cases. Accessed 24 Jan. 2023.

● Singh, Harshraj. “Street Vendors Forced to Pay Bribe to Station Carts Waiting for

Vending Zones.” Hindustan Times, Hindustan Times, 24 May 2015,

www.hindustantimes.com/punjab/street-vendors-forced-to-pay-bribe-to-station-

carts-waiting-for-vending-zones/story-WI04PSdQglZvK1ilq60WVJ.html.

Accessed 9 Jan. 2023.

● Special Correspondent. “Govt. Unveils ₹6.28 Lakh Cr Stimulus Post Second

COVID Wave.” Thehindu.com, 28 June 2021,

www.thehindu.com/business/Economy/nirmala-sitharaman-unveils-new-covid-

recovery-package-expands-credit-relief/article35020572.ece. Accessed 1 Jan.

2023.

39
● “6.3: Price Elasticity of Supply.” Social Sci LibreTexts, 2018,

socialsci.libretexts.org/Bookshelves/Economics/Book

%3A_Economics_(Boundless)/6%3A_Elasticity_and_its_Implications/

6.3%3A_Price_Elasticity_of_Supply#:~:text=There%20are%20numerous

%20factors%20that%20impact%20the%20price%20elasticity%20of,mobility

%2C%20and%20how%20costs%20react.. Accessed 24 Jan. 2023.

● "Theory of Unbalanced Growth". 2023

https://acaneretuedutr.weebly.com/uploads/9/0/1/5/

9015786/theory_of_unbalanced_growth.pdf. Accessed 18 February 2023.

● “MICROCREDIT EXTENDS SAME RIGHTS to POOR as ARE AVAILABLE

to EVERYONE ELSE, SAYS SECRETARY-GENERAL in MESSAGE to

LAUNCH CEREMONY for INTERNATIONAL YEAR | UN Press.” Un.org, 18

Nov. 2004, press.un.org/en/2004/sgsm9601.doc.htm. Accessed 19 Jan. 2023.

● “Muhammad Yunus Quotes (Author of Banker to the Poor).” Goodreads.com,

2023, www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/1254841.Muhammad_Yunus. Accessed

19 Jan. 2023.

● “PM Street Vendor’s AtmaNirbhar Nidhi (PM SVANidhi)| National Portal of

India.” India.gov.in, 2020, www.india.gov.in/spotlight/pm-street-vendors-

atmanirbhar-nidhi-pm-svanidhi. Accessed 24 Jan. 2023.

● “PM SVAnidhi.” Mohua.gov.in, 2014,

www.pmsvanidhi.mohua.gov.in/Home/Schemes. Accessed 10 Jan. 2023.

40
Books

● "Economics - course companion - jocelyn blink and ian dorton - second edition -

oxford 2012.pdf". 2023 http://file:///Users/shreyansjuniwal/Downloads/eco

nomics - course companion - jocelyn blink and ian dorton - second edition -

oxford 2012.pdf. Accessed 20 January 2023.

● Microfinance 3.0 Reconciling Sustainability with Social Outreach and

Responsible Delivery. Accessed 14 December 2022.

Research Papers

● Altay, Asuman. The Challenge for Global Women Poverty: Microfinance (or
Microcredit) as a Solution for Women Poverty in Turkey. 2007. Accessed 13 Jan.
2023.
● "A. Samarpitha, et al.pdf". 2023 https://www.ijcmas.com/8-11-2019/A.

Samarpitha, et al.pdf. Accessed 10 January 2023.

● Banerjee, Abhijit V., et al. “The Miracle of Microfinance? Evidence from a

Randomized Evaluation.” SSRN Electronic Journal, 2013,
https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2250500. Accessed 24 July 2019. Accessed 11 Jan. 2023.
● Banerji, Annie. “FEATURE-Indian Street Vendors “Shattered” as Coronavirus

Wrecks Trade.” U.S., 21 Sept. 2020, www.reuters.com/article/healthcoronavirus-

india-workers-idUSL8N2GB44R. Accessed 6 Jan 2023.

● Bhowmik, Sharit, and Debdulal Saha. FINANCIAL ACCESSIBILITY of the

STREET VENDORS in INDIA: CASES of INCLUSION and EXCLUSION a Study

Conducted By. 2011. Accessed 10 January 2023.

● Canbary, Zara, and Charles Grant. Economics and Finance Working Paper Series

the Marginal Propensity to Consume for Different Socio-Economic Groups. 2019.

Accessed 7 December 2022.

41
● Daley-Harris, Sam & Zimmerman, Jamie. (2009). 'Microfinance does not usually

serve the very poor, for whom it can represent a route into debt rather than a way

out of poverty.'. Enterprise Development and Microfinance. 20. 79-85.

10.3362/1755-1986.2009.010. Accessed 2 December 2022.

● Herath, H.M.W.A. “MICROFINANCE Theory and Practice.” ResearchGate, S.

Godage & Brothers (Pvt) Ltd, 661/675, P. de S. Kularathe Mawatha, Colombo 10,

Sri Lanka, 12 Sept. 2018,

www.researchgate.net/publication/335757487_MICROFINANCE_Theory_and_P

ractice. Accessed 24 Jan. 2023.

● Johansson, Camilla, et al. Microcredit Impact on Business Performance a Minor

Field Study in El Salvador. 2014. Accessed 14 Jan. 2023.

● Karlan, Dean, et al. “Debt Traps? Market Vendors and Moneylender Debt in India

and the Philippines.” American Economic Review: Insights, vol. 1, no. 1, 1 June

2019, pp. 27–42, www.aeaweb.org/articles?id=10.1257/aeri.20180030,

10.1257/aeri.20180030. Accessed 24 Jan. 2023.

● Littlefield, Elizabeth, et al. Is Microfinance an Effective Strategy to Reach the

Millennium Development Goals? 2003. Accessed 19 Jan. 2023.
● Martinez, Lina, and Juan David. “Debt Portfolios of the Poor: The Case of Street

Vendors in Cali, Colombia.” ResearchGate, unknown, May 2018,

www.researchgate.net/publication/325255721_Debt_Portfolios_of_the_Poor_The

_Case_of_Street_Vendors_in_Cali_Colombia. Accessed 24 Jan. 2023.

● Saha, Debdulal, and Phd Scholar. CONDITIONS of “DECENT WORKING

LIFE” of STREET VENDORS in MUMBAI. Accessed 9 Jan. 2023.

42
● Scholar, Research. FINANCIAL LITERACY and OTHER FACTORS

MODERATING STREET VENDORS’ FINANCIAL DECISION MAKING

NIKITHA NEELAPPA S Dr. KARTHIGAI PRAKASHAM CHELLASWAMY. 2022,

tianjindaxuexuebao.com/dashboard/uploads/35.4MQG2.pdf,

10.17605/OSF.IO/4MQG2. Accessed 21 Jan. 2023.

● Susanto, Joko. “Education, Labour Productivity and Industrial Performance:

Evidence of Indonesia.” ResearchGate, unknown, 2014,

www.researchgate.net/publication/335135946_Education_Labour_Productivity_a

nd_Industrial_Performance_Evidence_of_Indonesia. Accessed 24 Jan. 2023.

● Swope, Tessie. “Microfinance and Poverty Alleviation.” Rollins Undergraduate

Research Journal, vol. 2, 2010, scholarship.rollins.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?
article=1006&context=rurj.
● Tripathi, Sachin. 750|Sachin Tripathi HUNGER and FOOD SECURITY in

INDIA:-A REALITY CHECK vis-à-vis SOME PRAGMATIC SOLUTIONS

towards ACHIEVING the UNITED NATIONS SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

GOALS of QUALITY EDUCATION and RESPONSIBLE CONSUMPTION and

PRODUCTION HUNGER and FOOD SECURITY in INDIA:-A REALITY

CHECK VIS- À-VIS SOME PRAGMATIC SOLUTIONS towards ACHIEVING the

UNITED NATIONS SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS of QUALITY

EDUCATION and RESPONSIBLE CONSUMPTION and PRODUCTION. Vol.

20, no. 1, 2021, pp. 1750–1753, www.ejmanager.com/mnstemps/218/218-

1615629456.pdf?t=1674569148, 10.17051/ilkonline.2021.01.184. Accessed 24

Jan. 2023.

● Weiss, John, and Heather Montgomery. “Great Expectations: Microfinance and

Poverty Reduction in Asia and Latin America.” ResearchGate, Taylor & Francis
(Routledge), Feb. 2005,

43
 www.researchgate.net/publication/24085763_Great_Expectations_Microfinance_
and_Poverty_Reduction_in_Asia_and_Latin_America. Accessed 17 Feb. 2023.

Report

● "Human Development Indicators (UN) • European University Institute". 2023

https://www.eui.eu/Research/Library/ResearchGuides

/Economics/Statistics/DataPortal/HDR#:~:text=Human Development Indicators

published annually,the annual Human Development Report. Accessed 4 January

2023.

● D’Cruz, Adrian. “Only 11% of Vulnerable Street Vendors Benefitted from PM

Credit Scheme: Survey.” IndiaSpend, Indiaspend, 15 Sept. 2021,

www.indiaspend.com/governance/only-11-of-vulnerable-street-vendors-

benefitted-from-pm-credit-scheme-survey-774968. Accessed 7 Jan. 2023.

● Law, Abhishek. “Nearly 20,000 Schools Closed in India in 2021-22 due to Covid,

Staff Strength Also Dropped: Ministry of Education Report.”

Thehindubusinessline.com, 3 Nov. 2022,

www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/education/nearly-20000-schools-closed-in-

india-in-2021-22-due-to-covid-staff-strength-also-dropped-ministry-of-education-

report/article66091511.ece. Accessed 24 Jan. 2023.

● “Login - PM SVA Nidhi.” Mohua.gov.in, 2023,

pmsvanidhi.mohua.gov.in/LoginSecondLoanTerm. Accessed 2 Jan. 2023.

● “Microfinance: Good for the Poor?” Africa Renewal, 19 June 2015,

www.un.org/africarenewal/magazine/august-2015/microfinance-good-poor.

Accessed 19 Jan. 2023.

44
 ● “Reserve Bank of India - Reports.” Rbi.org.in, 2020,

www.rbi.org.in/Scripts/PublicationReportDetails.aspx?UrlPage=&ID=1154.

Accessed 9 Jan. 2023.

Journal

● "Dr.-Varun-Sharma-JLSR.pdf". 2023

https://thelawbrigade.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/ 05/Dr.-Varun-Sharma-

JLSR.pdf. Accessed 10 January 2023.

● Kumari, Pinki. (2015). Issues and Challenges for Street Vendors in Delhi. SSRN

Electronic Journal. 10.2139/ssrn.2779343. Accessed 10 January 2023.

● Singh, Shrikant, et al. “Socio-Economic Inequality in Malnutrition among

Children in India: An Analysis of 640 Districts from National Family Health

Survey (2015–16).” International Journal for Equity in Health, vol. 18, no. 1,

Dec. 2019, equityhealthj.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12939-019-1093-0,

10.1186/s12939-019-1093-0. Accessed 24 Jan. 2023.

Appendices

Appendix 1: General questionnaire given to the beneficiaries, C-Scheme and Mansarovar

To the respondent,

The goal of conducting this survey is to collect information about the indicators and variables

that have changed due to the implementation of the PMSAVNY. This information will only be

used for academic intentions only and all data will be kept confidential.

45
We are grateful for your cooperation

Name: ___________________

Age: ___________________

No. of family members: ___________________

No. of children: ___________________

Education status: ___________________

Bank account linked with your Aadhar/Mobile number? Yes _____ No _____

Please answer the following questions in the context of your individual situation before and after

the implementation of the PMSAVN scheme.

Questions Pre PMSAVNY Post PMSAVNY

What was your annual

income?

What was your annual

savings if any?

46
 What was your yearly

expenditure on healthcare?

What was your annual debt if

any?

Appendix 2: Sample Response 1

General questionnaire given to the beneficiaries of C-Scheme and Mansorovar(it has been

translated from local language to English)

To the respondent,

The goal of conducting this survey is to collect information about the indicators and variables

that have changed due to the implementation of the PMSAVNY. This information will only be

used for academic intentions only and all data will be kept confidential.

We are grateful for your cooperation

47
Name: ____Rajesh__Jothia__________

Age: __________24_________

No. of family members: ______5_____________

No. of children: ________2___________

Education status: __________5_________

Bank account linked with your Aadhar/Mobile number? Yes __✓___ No _____

Please answer the following questions in the context of your individual situation before and after

the implementation of the PMSAVN scheme.

Questions Pre PMSAVNY Post PMSAVNY

What was your annual ₹19,958 ₹24,203

income?

What was your annual 1.82% 1.89%

savings if any?

48
 What was your yearly ₹500 ₹1,062

expenditure on healthcare?

What was your annual debt if ₹4,070 ₹4,000

any?

Appendix 3: Sample Response 2

General questionnaire given to the beneficiaries of C-Scheme and Mansorovar(it has been

translated from local language to English)

To the respondent,

The goal of conducting this survey is to collect information about the indicators and variables

that been chagned du to the implementation of the PMSAVNY. This infomation will only be

used for academic intentions only and the all data will be kept confidential.

49
We are grateful for your co-operation

Name: _____Kanish__Napur_______

Age: ________31___________

No. of family members: ________5___________

No. of children: _______3____________

Education status: _______4 _____

Bank account linked with your Aadhar/Mobile number? Yes __✓___ No _____

Please answer the following questions in the context of your individual situation before and after

the implementation of the PMSAVN scheme.

Questions Pre PMSAVNY Post PMSAVNY

What was your annual 53344 64600

income?

What was your annual 1.71% 1.78%

savings if any?

50
 What was your yearly ₹1,000 ₹4,019

expenditure on healthcare?

What was your annual debt if ₹2,000 ₹1,970

any?

Appendix 4: Collected data on street vendors of C-Scheme

Respondent no. Age No. of family Education status No. years

members (years of working as a

schooling) street vendor

1 31 4 1 19

2 23 3 2 4

51
3 28 2 1 6

4 20 1 1 13

5 20 2 1 15

6 32 2 4 4

7 27 3 5 19

8 23 4 4 19

9 31 2 3 6

10 26 1 5 4

11 35 4 4 13

12 38 2 2 6

13 21 0 3 17

14 31 2 3 1

15 32 3 2 2

16 22 2 1 15

17 21 0 4 19

18 34 3 5 20

52
19 31 4 4 7

20 28 3 2 21

21 20 3 1 17

22 30 4 3 12

23 24 4 4 1

24 40 0 2 9

25 30 1 2 5

26 26 1 4 8

27 31 2 2 21

28 33 3 2 17

29 34 4 3 6

30 18 1 1 6

53
Appendix 5: Colleted data on street vendors of Mansarovar

Respondent no. Age No. of family Education status No. of years

members (years of working as a

schooling) street vendor

1 21 5 2 6

54
2 30 4 5 4

3 36 2 4 9

4 27 5 5 16

5 38 4 3 8

6 36 3 1 1

7 18 3 1 8

8 33 1 4 15

9 22 2 1 3

10 37 1 4 9

11 34 1 2 14

12 31 1 3 16

13 30 2 4 11

14 31 2 4 7

15 20 3 5 14

16 40 5 4 7

17 29 2 5 4

55
18 40 3 4 13

19 29 5 5 20

20 40 2 1 1

21 23 0 5 15

22 38 5 1 6

23 30 0 1 19

24 39 0 5 13

25 22 5 1 7

26 22 0 3 6

27 25 4 5 4

28 40 0 5 15

29 23 4 1 4

30 40 4 1 6

56
Appendix 6: Income of the beneficiaries in C-Scheme

Income Group Beneficiary Before After Change

Number

Low Income 1 22005 24145 2140

Group
2 18004 24771 6767

3 21509 24750 3241

57
 4 19500 23950 4450

5 20608 24202 3594

6 18803 24550 5747

7 20010 24912 4902

8 21007 24250 3243

9 18500 24611 6111

10 19306 24850 5544

11 21202 24300 3098

12 18900 24653 5753

13 20900 22004 1104

14 18611 24356 5745

15 19834 24756 4922

16 18101 24605 6504

Middle Income 17 58511 64019 5508

Group
18 56900 62000 5100

19 58700 66000 7300

20 57421 71000 13579

58
 21 58134 67032 8898

22 57915 68048 10133

23 58600 68801 10201

24 57300 68000 10700

25 58119 68099 9980

26 54900 65741 10841

High Income 27 102121 109250 7129

Group
28 102079 109215 7136

29 102300 109285 6985

30 101908 109238 7330

r=0.9926495765

59
Appendix 7: Income of the beneficiaries in Mansarovar

Income Groups Beneficiary After Change

Number Before

Low Income 1 20001 25005 5004

group
2 19507 25600 6093

3 19855 25506 5651

4 20206 26004 5798

5 19600 24700 5100

6 20100 25300 5200

7 19702 25255 5553

8 19958 24203 4245

9 20050 27007 6957

10 19403 24500 5097

11 19800 25100 5300

12 20309 24908 4599

13 19500 25000 5500

14 19950 24601 4651

60
 15 20250 25200 4950

16 19605 26000 6395

17 19850 25102 5252

18 18004 24509 6505

19 18650 25604 6954

Middle Income 20 56746 72081 15335

group
21 56343 61050 4707

22 55519 64123 8604

23 54843 59983 5140

24 54845 66130 11285

25 56940 59945 3005

26 53344 64600 11256

27 53980 56608 2628

High Income 28 84011 110001 25990

group
29 125012 101008 -24004

30 90977 106991 16014

61
r= 0.6002713077

Appendix 8: Average Change in income in C-Scheme and Mansarovar (%)

Avg Change in

Income (%) per

person in C Scheme 23% 16% 7% 15.33%

Avg Change in

Income (%) per

person in

Mansarovar 28% 14% 6% 16%

Appendix 9: Average Change in income in C-Scheme and Mansarovar (₹)

Avg Change 4,554 9,224 7,147

62
in Income(₹)

per person in

C Scheme

Avg Change

in Income (₹)

per person in

Mansarovar 5,516 7,745 6,000

Appendix 10: Change in Expenditure on consumer durable goods, C-Scheme

Durables purchased Before the scheme After the scheme

Gas stove 23 24

Light bulbs 25 38

Utensils 17 12

Appendix 11: Change in Expenditure on consumer durable goods, Mansarovar

Durables purchased Before the scheme After the scheme

Gas stove 23 24

Light bulbs 22 18

Utensils 17 23

63
Appendix 12: High Income group savings pre and post scheme in C-Scheme

Average Savings pre- PMSAVNY 1.78%

High Income Group of C-Scheme Average Saving post PMSAVNY 2.02%

Appendix 13: Change in Income vs Change in Expenditure on food in C-Scheme

Income Groups Beneficiary Number Change in

Expenditure on

Change in Income healthcare

Low Income group 1 2140 3019

2 6767 3980

3 3241 3657

4 4450 2601

5 3594 1123

6 5747 562

64
 7 4902 780

8 3243 115

9 6111 102

10 5544 190

11 3098 256

12 5753 780

13 1104 780

14 5745 475

15 4922 195

16 6504 276

17 5508 132

18 5100 501

19 7300 -56

Middle Income group 20 13579 -20

21 8898 -13

22 10133 -1000

23 10201 -1295

65
 24 10700 0

25 9980 -44

26 10841 -772

27 7129 -2562

High Income group 28 7136 -2690

29 6985 -3104

30 7330 -3701

Average change in Average Change in

income Expenditure

Low Income Group 4554 1181

Middle Income Group 9224 -257

High Income Group 7147 -3014

66
Appendix 14: Change in Income vs Change in Expenditure on food in Mansarovar

Income Groups Beneficiary Number Change in

Expenditure on

Change in Income healthcare

Low Income group 1 5004 5019

2 6093 4980

3 5651 4657

4 5798 6601

5 5100 5123

6 5200 2562

7 5553 3195

8 4245 1115

67
 9 6957 2760

10 5097 2893

11 5300 3000

12 4599 1913

13 5500 1766

14 4651 1088

15 4950 1300

16 6395 780

17 5252 900

18 6505 -31

19 6954 -56

Middle Income group 20 15335 -336

21 4707 -762

22 8604 -169

23 5140 -280

24 11285 -525

25 3005 289

68
 26 11256 690

27 2628 -1622

High Income group 28 25990 -1684

29 -24004 -1207

30 16014 -2112

Average change in income Average Change in Expenditure

Low Income Group 5516 2609

Middle Income group 7745 -339

High Income group 6000 -1668

69
Appendix 15: Number of sick leaves taken before and PMSAVNY, C-Scheme and Mansarovar

No. of sick leaves taken

Before the scheme After the scheme

C-Scheme 28 20

Mansorovar 35 27

70
Appendix 16: Change in Enrollment pre and post scheme, C-Scheme and Mansarovar

Number of children enrolled in a school

Before scheme After scheme

C-Scheme
14 7
Mansorovar
11 3

71
 Appendix 17: Total Indebtedness level pre and post scheme, C-Scheme and Mansarovar

Total
Total Total Total Indebtedness Total change in Total change in
Indebtedness Indebtedness Indebtedness post Indebtednes in Indebtednes in
pre post pre PMSAVNY C-Scheme (₹) Mansarovar(₹)
PMSAVNY in PMSAVNY PMSAVNY in
C-Scheme(₹) in C- in Mansarovar(₹
Scheme(₹) Mansarovar
Income (₹)
Groups
Low Income
Group 24000 20800 34390 30400
Middle
Income
Group 149000 166300 154160 168000
High Income
Group 92000 76000 76770 69750 1900 -2830

Total 265000 263100 265320 268150

72
73
Appendix 18: Interview Transcript of C-Scheme street vendor (Translated from the local

language to English)

1. What has been the overall impact of PMSAVNY till now?

I would say that we have benefited from the scheme. Street vending doesn’t earn enough to

sustain finally so a scheme that would ease financial contrants for us was important for us.

Through PMSAVNY, I was able to avail ₹ 10,000 as a loan which I have fully repaid. Even my

friends believe there financial burdens through the scheme reduced for quite some while because

as even without collateral we could get loan which had always been a problem till now.

2. How effective has this government initiative been so far?

I would say moderately because few of my friends from other localities like Sitapura and

Mansarovar were either unaware of the scheme before I told them or they were not able to

receive the loan because because of corruption and red tapism. So I believe the government

should have worked on promoting the scheme more and also easing the process of taking the

loan. I am only 8th grade pass and it was a hard time for me to understand how I could avail the

loan. A generous officer helped me while I was in the bank, so I am very thankful of him.

3. How have you used the loan for your objectives?

Firstly, with all the collected money, I paid off much of my previous debt which was a huge

relief for me and my family. I feel much less mental stress now. With the amount due, I with

help of couple of my friends were able to rent a storage facility where we would all come at

night and discuss our stocks and finances for the next day. This helped because we would plan

and choose area to set our stalls at so that we get higher number of customers and don’t clash

74
with each other by setting our stalls very close to each other. This has increased our revenues and

many of friends who previously found it hard to afford basic necessities like food are now able to

do that. Also, we have formed groups and now purchase in bulk so we get discounts. Especially

for my business it has been beneficial because I buy immunity boosting fruits in large quantities

and because their demand used to be very high during pandemic, all of it gets sold within 2-3

days.

4. According to you, have you started to save more since the enactment of the scheme?

I was able to save a little before the scheme enactment but post scheme my saving have

increased. Firstly because I had a little extra money, I was ofcourse able to save a little more too.

But most importantly, pandemic taught me to save a higher proportion of my income because

unforeseen circumstances like Covid-19 can happen anytime so I need to be prepared.

5. What all aspects of your life was been changed by the scheme?

The financial assistance has helped me and my friends would also agree that this is the same case

for them too. Education wise, I am now able to afford sending my children to a great private

school instead of a government school. However, due to pandemic I didnd’t send them because

of safety concerns. Furthermore, the number of doctor visits have decreased for us because our

food expenditure have increased so we can afford variety of food now.

75
Appendix 19: Interview transcrip with Municipality officer (Translated from local language to

English)

1. Can you provide me with background information about street vending

Sure! Street vending falls under the informal economy. Many of these vendors are immigrants

who have low occupational mobility. There have been several researches conducted on their

impact on the Indian economy. They were considered one of the major component of the supply

chain in the pandemic.

2. What impact did the scheme PMSAVNY have on these vendors

Many vendors were able avail full ₹ 10,000 as a loan but some believe that it was still

insufficient. Pandemic played a major role in the initiation of this scheme. Because the malls

were closed, many people relied on these street vendors for the purchase of their goods. Hence, it

was essential for the government to make sure street vendors are able to continue their business

because as I said earlier, they were important for the supply chain of the Indian economy in the

pandemic. Further, the high earning street vendors through the assistance of this scheme were

able to lower their prices and increase profit margins. Overall, it was seen that the average

income did rise for most the vendors.

3. Why do street vendors fall into the poverty trap?

Most of the vendors end up using their new loan to pay back their previous loans. This means

they are stuck in a vicious cycle where whatever they take on loan, most of it isn’t used to

increase in their productivity. This rather increases their total debt level in long run. Education

76
on financial management is required, especially for young vendors who do not have enough

business experience to pay off the loans they have taken.

4. What methods were previously used to obtain credit loans?

Loans were largely unavailable to poor people and if these vendors were ever ablet to get a loan

from the local money market, it would be at high interest rates at like 10% or 11%. This

prevented many from either taking up a loan or taking it up and not being able to repay it.

5. What do the vendor think about the digitized economy and the use of QR codes.

Many vendors don’t understand how to use it because they haven’t yet been properly introduced

to technology. Few of them don’t understand the process of it and so do not trust it. Most I like

traditional way of buying, that is through notes and coins. I hope in future they get more

encouragement to it.

77
78