District Industries Centres - Role, Functions, Features & Eligibility Criteria
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Industrial development is crucial for the growth of an economy. Being an agricultural country, the focus in India mainly relied on agriculture. However, when the economy plateaued, the government launched a program to set up District Industries Centres in 1978.
A DIC (District Industries Centre) also offers numerous schemes to facilitate the growth of industries in rural areas of the country. Read on to learn about District Industries Centres, their role, schemes, and more.
The main aim of a District Industries Centre, DIC for short, is to shift the focus on the development of cottage and small-scale industries. Through a DIC, the government aims to offer the resources that villages and small entrepreneurs need and thereby promote industrialisation.
As mentioned, District Industries Centres help promote the growth of industries in the rural and remote areas of the country. DICs aim to ensure that entrepreneurs can get all the required resources from one place. This would eliminate unnecessary back and forth between different institutions.
A DIC does more than offer financial aid. It also provides training and promotional help through various schemes. Given that DICs are a part of the central scheme, the funding provided by them comes from the central government and not the state government.
These centres operate on a district level and as such there are multiple DICs in a state. At the Joint Director Level, a General Manager heads DICs with the help of an administrative assistant and managers specialising in credit, handloom, development, economic investigation.
In a broader sense, the role of a DIC (District Industries Centre) is to offer support to small and village entrepreneurs to facilitate growth. Under this, the responsibilities of a DIC includes the following:
Ensure that registered business owners get the necessary support in establishing their business
Encourage the growth and development manufacturing companies situated in urban and rural areas
Offer self-employed individuals with the necessary tools and equipment for their business
Provide single window clearing system to facilitate easy and quick settlement of issues seamlessly
Assess the implementation and functioning of schemes offered to ensure support is offered smoothly
Offer financial aid to startups, MSMEs, and companies under the Startup India Scheme to facilitate growth
The eligibility criteria of District Industries Centres schemes vary for every scheme and program. The general requirements for eligibility require you to be above the age of 18 and having cleared 8th standard.
Following are eligible for schemes of District Industries Centres provided they meet eligibility criteria:
Individuals belonging to OBCs, SCs, and safai karamcharis families
Physically disabled professionals (CAs, doctors, engineers, advocates, and others)
Along with the functions mentioned above, a District Industry Centre (DIC) also has the following functions:
Provide funding to business owners through loans from banks, NBFCs, and other financial institutions
Monitor district-wise flow of industrial credit
Train business owners through the training courses and programs offered
Arrange supply of machines and tools
Assign locations for acquiring the required tools and machinery
Conduct surveys to offer better and in-depth insights about industry trends and forecasts
Work with SSI units and offer training programs to promote growth of rural artisans
Guide business owners in developing products and services with better quality through training programs
Given below is an overview of District Industries Centres present throughout the country:
State |
No. of District Industries Centres (DICs) |
Districts with DICs |
Andhra Pradesh |
13 |
Srikakulam, Vizianagaram, Visakhapatnam, East Godavari, West Godavari, Krishna, Guntur, Prakasam, Kurnool, Kadappa, Anantapur, Chittoor, S.P.S.R. Nellore |
Arunachal Pradesh |
16 |
Tawang, Bomdila, Seppa, Yupia, Ziro, Koloriang, Daporijo, Along, Yingkiong, Pasighat, Anini, Roing, Tezu, Anjaw, Changlang, Khonsa |
Assam |
19 |
Dibrugarh, Mangaldoi, Kamroop, Barnagaon, Rangauti, Jorhat, Sonitpur, Nalbari, Kokrajhar, Dhemaji, Guwahati, Rajagaon, Tinsukia, Haflong, Karimganj, Sivasagar, Gauripur, Chanbarikhuti, Diphu |
Bihar |
38 |
Araria, Arwal, Aurangabad, Banka, Begusarai, Bhagalpur, Bhojpur, Buxar, Darbhanga, East Champaran, Gaya, Gopalganj, Jamui, Jehanabad, Kaimur, Khagaria, Kishanganj, Lakhisarai, Madhepura, Madhubani, Munger, Muzaffarpur, Nalanda, Nawada, Patna, Purnea, Rohtas, Saharsa, Samastipur, Saran, Sheikhpura, Sheohar, Sitamarhi, Siwan, Supaul, Vaishali, West Champaran |
Gujarat |
32 |
Ahmedabad, Amreli, Anand, Banaskantha, Bharuch, Bhavnagar, Dahod, Gandhinagar, Jamnagar, Junagarh, Kheda, Kachchh-Bhuj, Mehsana, Narmada, Navsari, Panchmahal, Patan, Porbandar, Rajkot, Sabarkantha, Surat, Surendranagar, Tapi, Vadodara, Valsad, Botad, Morbi, Devbhumi Dwarka, Gir Somnath, Aravalli, Mahisagar, Chhota Udaipur |
Haryana |
21 |
Ambala, Bahadurgarh, Bhiwani, Faridabad, Fatehabad, Gurgaon, Jind, Kaithal, Karnal, kurukshetra, Mewat, narnaul, Panchkula, Panipat, Palwal, Rewari, Rohtak, Sirsa, Hisar, Sonepat, Yamuna Nagar |
Himachal Pradesh |
7 |
Hamirpur, Solan, Nahan, Kullu, Bilaspur, Shimla, Dharamshala |
Jammu & Kashmir |
20 |
Jammu, Samba, Kathua, Udhampur, Reasi, Rajouri, Poonch, Doda, Kishtwar, Ramban, Srinagar, Budgam, Pulwama, Anantnag, Kulgam, Baramulla, Kupwara, Bandipora, Shopian, Ganderbal |
Jharkhand |
20 |
Palamu, Garhwa, Latehar, Hazaribagh, Koderma Chatra, Ramgarh, Giridih, Dhanbad Bokaro, Lohardaga, Gumla Simdega, Ranchi Khunti, Chaibasa, Jamshedpur, Saraikhela Kharsawan, Deogarh, Dumka Jamtara, Sahebganj, Pakur, Godda |
Karnataka |
30 |
Bangalore Urban, Bangalore Rural, Bagalkot, Belgaum, Bellary, Bidar, Vijayapura, Chamarajnagar, Chikkamangalur, Chikkaballapur, Chitradurga, D. Kannada, Dharwad, Davangere, Gadag, Kalburgi, Hassan, Haveri, Kodagu, Kolar, Koppal, Mandya, Mysore, Raichur, Ramanagara, Shimoga, Tumkur, Udupi, Uttara Kannada, Yadagir. |
Kerala |
14 |
Thiruvananthampuram, Kollam, Pathanamthitta, Allapuzha, Kottayam, Edukki, Ernakulam, Thrissur, Pallakad, Mallapuram, Kozhikode, Wayanad, Kannur, Kasargod |
Ladhak |
2 |
Kargil, Leh |
Madhya Pradesh |
14 |
Bhopal, Ujjain, Indore,Gwalior, Khandwa, Jabalpur, Katni, Umaria, Neemuch, Raisen, Panna, Shajapur, Paraswar, Kawardha, |
Maharashtra |
33 |
Ahmadnagar, Amravati, Akola, Aurangabad, Beed, Bhandara, Buldhana, Chandrapur, Dhule, Gadchiroli, Gondia, Hingoli, Jalana, Jalgaon, Kolhapur, Latur, Nagpur, Nanded, Nandurbar, Nashik, Osmanabsd, Parbhani, Pune, Raigad, Ratnagiri, Sangli, Satara, Sindhudurg, Solapur, Thane, Wardha, Washim, Yavatamal |
Manipur |
9 |
Imphal West, Imphal East, Bishnupur, Thoubal, Churachandpur, Chandel, Ukhrul, Senapati, Tamenglong |
Meghalaya |
8 |
East Khasi Hills District, West Khasi Hills District, West Jaintia Hills District, West Garo Hills District, East Garo Hills District, South Garo Hills District, South Jaintia Hills District, Ri Bhoi District, |
Mizoram |
8 |
Kolasib, Mamit, Aizawl, Serchhip, Champhai, Lunglei, Lawn Tak, Saiha |
Nagaland |
4 |
Dimapur, Wokha, Chozuba, Kohima |
Odisha |
31 |
Cuttack, Bhubaneshwar, Puri, Gajapati, Balasore, Bolangir, Dhenkanal, Ganjam, Jagatpur, Kalahandi, Keonjhar, Koraput, Mayurbhanj, Phulbani, Rayagada, Rourkela, Sambalpur, Sundargarh, Angul, Baragarh, Bhadrak, Boudh, Deogarh, Jagatsinghpur, Jharsuguda, Kendrapara, Malkangiri, Naupada, Nayagarh, Nabarangpur, Subarnapur |
Punjab |
18 |
Amritsar, Batala, Bathinda, Faridkot, Ferozepur, Hoshiarpur, Jalandhar, Kapurthala, Malerkotla, Mandi Gobindgarh, Mansa, Moga, Mohali, Muktsar, Nawansharh, Patiala, Ludhiana, Chandigarh |
Rajasthan |
36 |
Ajmer, Alwar, Banswara, Baran, Barmer, Bharatpur, Bhilwara. Bikaner, Bundi, Chattisgarh, Churu, Dausa, Dholpur, Dungarpur, Hanumangarh, Jaipur, Jisalmer, Jalore, Jhalawar, Jhunjhunu, Jodhpur, Karauli, Kota, Nagaur, Pali, Pratapgarh, Rajsamand, Sawai Madhopur, Sikar, Sirohi, Sri Ganganagar, Tonk, Udaipur |
Sikkim |
2 |
Gangtok, Jorethang |
Tamil Nadu |
32 |
Ariyalur, Chennai, Coimbatore, Cuddalore, Dharmapuri, Dindigul, Erode, Kaanchipuram, Kanyakumari, Karur, Krishngiri, Madurai, Nagapattinam, Namakkal, The Nilgiris, Perambalur, Puddukottai, Ramanathpuram, Salem, Sivagangai, Thanjavur, Theni, Tiruchirapalli, Tirupur, Thiruvalur, Thiruvannamalai, Thiruvarur, Thoothukudi, Tirunelveli, Vellore, Villupuram, Virudhanagar. |
Tripura |
8 |
Dhalai, Spahijala, Khowai, Gomti, Unakoti, North Tripura, South Tripura, West Tripura |
Uttarakhand |
13 |
Dehradun, Tehri, Uttarkashi, Gopeshwar, Rudraprayag, Kotdwar, Roorkee, Udhamsingh Nagar, Haldwani, Almora, Bageshwar, Champawat , Pithoragarh |
Uttar Pradesh |
11 |
Bulandshahr, Azamgarh, Bijnor, Saharanpur, Ghaziabad, Kanpur, Lucknow, Moradabad, Gorakhpur, Sultanpur, Faizabad |
West Bengal |
10 |
Howrah, Malda, Jalpaiguri, Paschim Medinipur, Uttar Dinajpur, Dakshin Dinajpur, Purulia, Cooch Behar, South 24 Parganas District, Nadia |
District Industries Centres have been around since 1978, and have played a fundamental role in the growth of entrepreneurship across industries. The numerous schemes of District Industries Centres have resulted in increased employment opportunities.
All in all, DICs help shift the focus of the economy towards industrial growth and boost MSMEs and small businesses, all of which ultimately improve the economic growth of the country.
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FAQs About District Industries Centres
The eligibility for a loan from a DIC, District Industries Centre, depends on the scheme under which you apply. The general requirements are that you must have passed 8th standard and be above the age of 18.
A District Industries Centre, DIC for short, aims to shift the focus from agriculture towards industries. DICs do this by offering the necessary resources to the entrepreneurs situated in the rural areas.
The government offers District Industries Centres a maximum of 70% of the actual expenditure, subject to a maximum of ₹3.75 Lakhs.
The maximum amount offered by the government to District Industries Centres in case of non-recurring grant for construction of office is ₹2 Lakhs.
To get a District Industries Centre certificate, you need to submit a few documents. This includes your Aadhaar, bank details, business name, address, business type, start date of the business, main business activity, and more. You can get the complete list of documents required by contacting a District Industries Centre nearest to you.
To avail of a District Industries Centre loan scheme, you can fill out the form available on the District Industries Centre website relevant to your area. You can even contact the DIC by visiting their office or through a call/ email to know the exact process.
The interest rate on a loan from a District Industries Centre depends on the scheme you avail and can range between 3% to 12% per annum. You can check this information at the time of applying to ensure that you make an informed decision and get the best deal.
It can range from anywhere between 3 years and 10 years.
The promoter’s contribution for a loan from DIC, District Industries Centre, varies as per the scheme you avail and can go up to 10% of the total amount.
