MSME policy ready for release after extensive consultations
1 min read . Updated: 08 Feb 2023, 11:55 PM IST
PremiumIn the Union budget for FY24, the finance minister has allocated a record ₹22,138 crore for the MSMEs ministry, higher than the revised estimate of ₹15,628 crore for the current fiscal year.
New Delhi: The national policy on micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) is ready for release, having completed a protracted stakeholder consultation, a top government official said.
“An MSME policy has been prepared after long stakeholder consultations. We are hopeful that we will be able to bring it into the public domain quickly," MSME ministry secretary B.B. Swain said at the National MSME Conclave 2023 on Wednesday.
Minister of state for MSMEs Bhanu Pratap Singh Verma said the sector is set to witness high growth thanks to various government schemes launched over the years. Verma added that the Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme (ECLGS) scheme has helped MSMEs survive the covid shocks. “We must manufacture locally, and local items should be used by our industry too. Our MSMEs should go global, which will lead to new India. Our economy in 2014 was in 10th position globally. But now, by 2022, our economy has reached the fifth position," Verma said.
Secretary Swain said that within 31 months of the launch of the Udyam portal, 15.3 million MSMEs employing 101 million people have already registered. The rate of registration on the portal has crossed 30,000 per day.
On public procurement, Swain said the ministry has reviewed the reserve list of products provisioned under the public procurement policy, and a new draft list has been prepared targeting relevant and a wider ranges of products for MSMEs. Last year, against a target of 25% procurement from MSMEs, the achievement stands at 36%, he added.
In the Union budget for FY24, the finance minister has allocated a record ₹22,138 crore for the MSMEs ministry, higher than the revised estimate of ₹15,628 crore for the current fiscal year.
The budget also announced several measures to boost the MSME sector, including extension of the ECLG till 31 March, and a Raising and Accelerating MSME performance (RAMP) programme with an outlay of ₹6,000 crore.
According to Reserve Bank of India data, bank loans to MSMEs, under the priority sector, stood at ₹19.12 trillion as of 30 December, up 11.6% from a year earlier. The small business sector, with an estimated workforce of 110 million, has also gained importance owing to its status as one of the largest employment providers. A report by consulting firm KPMG and industry body CII said in November that these entities account for 30% of India’s GDP and 45% of exports.
