Government has made substantial changes in the Guidelines of Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana to benefit more and more urban poor by relaxing the norms for implementation of the Mission. Chairing the National Governing Council of the National Urban Livelihood Mission, Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation Minister Venkaiah Naidu said, banks have now been allowed to directly accept applications from the beneficiaries for extending subsidized loans for setting up individual and group enterprises under the Self-Employment Programme. <br/><br/>He said, one bank will be designated as the Nodal Agency for each State to coordinate with all other banks to increase banking linkages for loan support. The Minister said, norms for formation of Self-Help Groups of urban poor have been relaxed allowing up to 10 members to form a group in hilly tracts and tribal areas as against 20 members previously. People involved in vulnerable occupations like sanitation workers, rag pickers, and rikshaw pullers wiil be allowed to form such Groups to become eligible for bank loans and revolving fund of ten thousand rupees per group.<br/><br/>The Council has permitted convergence of Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana with other schemes like Prime Minister's Kaushal Vikas Yojana, Skill Development, Jan Dhan Yojana and various social security schemes like Pradhan Mantri Jivan Jyoti Bima Yojana and Suraksha Bima Yojana besides ensuring Aadhar linkages. Over 94 thousand beneficiaries have been given subsidized bank loans under Self-Employment Programme component for setting up individual and group enterprises against the target of 90 thousand.