Swarnajayanti Gram Swarojgar Yojana (SGSY) is an employment generation programme that provides income-generating assets through a mix of bank credit and government subsidy. In 1999, SGSY replaced Integrated Rural Development Programme (IRDP), the government’s flagship programme on rural development, integrated allied programmes to become the largest self-employment programme in the country today. This brief looks at the scheme’s foundational principles and basic features. It also examines SGSY’s performance in the past decade and whether it is an improvement over previous self-employment programmes.