The Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME), Government of India, organised an “Awareness Workshop on the Self-Reliant India (SRI) Fund for Supporting Women-Led MSMEs” on 4 November 2026 at Kartavya Bhawan 3, New Delhi, as part of the Yashashvini Campaign for promoting women entrepreneurship. The event was chaired by Shri Bharat Khera, Secretary (MSME).
The workshop brought together over 60 women entrepreneurs from across the country, along with senior officials from the Ministry of MSME, representatives of industry associations, NSIC Venture Capital Fund Limited (NVCFL). SBI Ventures Limited (SVL), Daughter Funds under the SRI Fund, Women Entrepreneurship Platform (WEP) of NITI Aayog and Atal Incubation Centre ALEAP Women Entrepreneurs Hub.
Dr. Rajneesh, Additional Secretary & Development Commissioner, Ministry of MSME, gave an overview of the journey of the SRI Fund. He explained that the Fund was conceived to extend equity support to MSMEs beyond traditional debt, with a ₹10,000 crore commitment from the Government of India, and an expectation that private investors would contribute four times that amount. He noted that, in several cases, investee enterprises associated with the SRI Fund had grown their turnover three to four times within two to three years, and had gone on to raise further capital from private sources. He urged the associations present to carry the message about the Fund to their members.
In his inaugural address, Shri Bharat Khera said that registrations on the Udyam and Udyam Assist portals had crossed 10 crore on 30 October 2026, which had bridged the formalisation gap. Of these, 37.6 per cent were women-owned enterprises, and now, let us aspire to take this share to 50 per cent. He noted that formalisation now placed a greater responsibility on the Ministry to help MSMEs scale up – for which, growth capital is critical.
Shri Khera shared that, under the SRI Fund, commitments of ₹8,305 crore had been made against the ₹10,000 crore corpus, and that nearly ₹48,000 crore had been leveraged from private venture capital and private equity funds. 72 Daughter Funds have been empanelled, and investments of ₹21,330 crore have already been made in 824 MSMEs, of which about 74 per cent are micro enterprises. Of the enterprises supported, 77 have moved up to a larger category, six have been listed on stock exchanges, and 32 exits have been completed with profits. He added that Daughter Funds take investment decisions on commercial lines, looking at viability, growth trajectory over the last three years, and a business plan with positive cash flows. The Government maintains an arm’s length from their day-to-day operations and does not play any role in Daughter Funds’ investment decisions.
Secretary also stressed that credit and equity must go together. He said that MSME credit outstanding had grown from about ₹10 lakh crore in 2014 to over ₹40 lakh crore, with the non-performing assets for MSME sector falling to about 3.5 per cent. He highlighted that an additional ₹2,000 crore has been provided to the SRI Fund in Union Budget 2026-27, for micro enterprises. He also drew attention to the newly rolled out ₹10,000 crore SME Growth Fund, which will invest directly in small and medium enterprises. He advised entrepreneurs to maintain proper financial records and adopt a suitable legal structure, and said that bringing in equity also improves an enterprise’s access to debt.
In Session I, titled ‘The growth journey of women-led MSMEs – why growth capital matters’, representatives of industry associations shared their experience of working with women entrepreneurs. They pointed out that many women-led enterprises that are early-stage require support through smaller tickets, investment-readiness programmes in Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities, support in accounting and business valuation, and flexibility for women entrepreneurs who may lack collateral or long balance-sheet histories. They also stressed the need to link capital with market access, including through the Government e-Marketplace (GeM), ONDC and exports, and emphasized the importance of organizing such workshops regularly.
In Session II, on the ‘Overview of the SRI Fund and the role of Daughter Funds’, Shri Praveen Kumar, Additional Development Commissioner, Ministry of MSME, explained the structure of the Fund, in which the Mother Fund invests only through Daughter Funds, and the Daughter Funds invest in MSMEs. Shri Subhransu Sekhar Acharya, Chairman-cum-Managing Director, NSIC, spoke on the gaps in the MSME ecosystem and advised entrepreneurs on the benefits of equity funding. Shri Prem Prabhakar, MD and CEO of SBI Ventures Limited, the investment manager of the SRI Fund, said that equity is of strategic value for growing enterprises as it does not require collateral and because investors provide sector specific mentorship and hand-holding. The Daughter Funds explained the investment criteria such as a strong market, a capable team, a scalable model, audited financials, governance readiness, including a private limited company structure, and a clear use of capital. They advised entrepreneurs on the common steps for acquiring equity funding, from screening to due diligence and documentation.
In Session III, the focus was on support available through ecosystem partners. Representatives from the Atal Incubation Centre ALEAP Women Entrepreneurs Hub and the Women Entrepreneurship Platform (WEP), NITI Aayog, presented the range of support available to women entrepreneurs, including incubation, mentorship, market access, access to information on government schemes, and compliance support. Technical support for the conceptualisation, planning, and execution of the workshop was provided by the ecosystem partner MicroSave Consulting (MSC).
The final session was an interactive Q&A where participants broached subjects such as approaching Daughter Funds, investment-readiness for proprietorship-run enterprises, sector-specific funds, and technology and infrastructure support. It was shared that details of the 72 Daughter Funds, including their sector focus and contacts, are available on the website of NSIC Venture Capital Fund Limited, the special purpose vehicle for the SRI Fund. The workshop concluded with the Ministry of MSME assuring continued support to women entrepreneurship through the Yashashvni Campaign in the future.