The income generation scheme for PWDs lends persons with disabilities in Punjab the capital to start their own small business, without charging interest. This guide explains how much you can borrow, who runs it, and what to prepare.

Its stated purpose is to engage persons with disabilities in Punjab in a meaningful pursuit of livelihood — earning, rather than only receiving.

Why the income generation scheme for PWDs lends rather than grants

Punjab already runs cash support for persons with disabilities through the Humqadam program and the Himmat Card. Those help with monthly costs.

But many persons with disabilities do not want a stipend as their whole future. They want to run a shop, a mobile repair business, a tailoring setup, a small poultry operation. What stops them is not ability. It is that no commercial lender will extend startup capital to someone with no collateral and no credit history.

This scheme exists to break that specific deadlock.

How much you can borrow

Interest-free loans from Rs 25,000 to Rs 100,000.

The amount depends on your business plan and what the scheme approves. A tailoring machine and initial cloth stock sit at a different level from setting up a small shop.

Since 2017, around Rs 270 million has been disbursed under the scheme, with a reported 100 percent recovery rate.

Interest-free loans from Rs 25,000 to Rs 100,000 help persons with disabilities start their own enterprise.

That recovery rate is worth understanding

A 100 percent recovery rate is unusual for any lending programme anywhere.

It tells you two useful things.

First, it answers the assumption that lending to poor borrowers is inherently risky. These borrowers repay. Reliably.

Second, and more practically for you: because the money comes back, the fund keeps circulating to new applicants. Repaying is not just your obligation, it is what keeps the scheme available to the next person with a disability who wants to start something.

Who is eligible

The scheme states that all persons with disabilities in Punjab are eligible for interest-free loans to start their own enterprise.

In practice you should expect to need:

  • A valid CNIC, ideally the special CNIC issued by NADRA identifying disability
  • Documentation of your disability, such as a certificate from an authorised medical board
  • A workable business idea you can explain
  • Residence in Punjab

Requirements can change. Confirm the current position on the PSPA helpline 1221.

Who actually runs it

Three bodies are involved, which explains why people get bounced around when asking:

  • PSPA — the Punjab Social Protection Authority, under whose programs the scheme sits
  • Punjab Small Industries Corporation (PSIC) — manages the scheme’s funds
  • Akhuwat — the service provider that administers it on the ground

Akhuwat is the name to know if you are trying to actually apply. It is Pakistan’s largest interest-free microfinance organisation, operating on the principle of Qarz-e-Hasna, and it has branches across Punjab.

If the helpline cannot place you, asking about the scheme at an Akhuwat branch is a sensible next step.

Before you apply: the business plan

You do not need a formal written document. You do need clear answers to a few questions, because whoever assesses your application will ask them:

  • What will you sell or make?
  • Who will buy it? Naming actual likely customers beats “people in the area”.
  • What exactly will the money buy? Itemise it.
  • What will you earn in a normal month?
  • What are the running costs — stock, transport, electricity, raw materials?
  • How will you repay from that income?

Also be realistic about how your disability shapes the work. A business that fits your mobility, your energy, and your daily routine will outlast one that fights it.

It is a loan

Interest-free does not mean free. Before accepting, be clear on:

  • The repayment schedule and when instalments start
  • The instalment amount and whether your projected income covers it
  • Whether a guarantor is required
  • What happens if the business struggles

Borrow what your plan actually needs. A smaller loan you repay comfortably beats a larger one that becomes a burden.

What kinds of business people actually start

The scheme is open-ended, but the businesses that succeed tend to share a shape: low stock costs, local customers, and work that can be done from one place.

Common examples include:

  • Mobile phone repair and accessories, which needs skill more than premises
  • Tailoring, where a machine pays for itself quickly
  • A small general store run from a room of the house
  • Poultry or goat rearing, which suits limited mobility
  • Photocopying, printing, or an easypaisa point
  • Embroidery or handicraft sold to a local shop

The pattern worth noticing is that most of these can run from home. If travel is difficult for you, that is not a limitation to work around, it is a filter that points you at the right business.

Start smaller than you think

The most common mistake is borrowing the maximum because it is available.

A Rs 100,000 loan with instalments you cannot meet is worse than a Rs 30,000 loan you repay comfortably while learning the trade. You can borrow again once you have a repayment record, and lenders treat a completed loan as the best possible reference.

Borrow for the version of the business you can actually run in month one, not the version you hope for in year three.

Registration is free

  • Applying costs nothing. Nobody should charge you a processing fee to submit.
  • No agent can guarantee approval.
  • Never share an OTP with anyone.
  • Get a receipt for anything you do pay.

Report demands for money through the Pakistan Citizen’s Portal.

Contact

Persons with disabilities in Punjab may qualify for several programs at once, and they are separate applications:

To see which Punjab and federal programs your household may qualify for, try our free eligibility checker.

GoPunjab is an independent information website. We are not PSPA, PSIC, or Akhuwat. We cannot approve a loan, process an application, or release funds. We only explain how the official process works.