Problems and Prospects of State Government Schemes on Entrepreneurship Development in Kalyana Karnataka: A Survey Of Entrepreneurs

Abstract

State schemes are central to entrepreneurship development in Kalyana Karnataka, a seven-district region granted special status under Article 371(J) of the Constitution of India because of its relative backwardness. This study examines how entrepreneurs experience seven state schemes, focusing on awareness, utilisation, satisfaction, problems and prospects. Primary data were collected from 150 entrepreneurs through a structured questionnaire between April 2024 and March 2025 and analysed with descriptive statistics, item ranking, Welch t-tests, one-way ANOVA, chi-square tests, logistic regression and ordinary least squares. Awareness of individual schemes was moderate (55–65%), but utilisation was low (9–27%); 74.7% of respondents had availed at least one scheme. The most serious problems were lack of training and handholding (mean 3.72), low grass-root awareness (3.70), weak marketing support and low digital literacy (3.69 each), whereas political interference ranked lowest (2.82). Beneficiaries reported higher prospects (3.40 vs 3.09) and overall satisfaction (3.50 vs 2.76) than non-beneficiaries, and attending an entrepreneurship development programme (EDP) raised the odds of availing a scheme almost twelvefold in a multivariable model (odds ratio 11.98, 95% CI 4.87–29.48). Perceptions did not differ significantly across districts, and availing was unrelated to gender, social category or locality. The results suggest that training-linked outreach, simpler and digitally supported procedures and faster release of funds deserve priority.