First Meeting of MSME Task Force on September 25 : Dinesh Rai

The first meeting of the MSME Task Force, headed by Prime Minister's Principal Secretary T K A Nair, to look into the issues concerning the sector will meet on September 25 to consider the various issues raised by MSME Associations.  This was disclosed by Mr. Dinesh Rai, Secretary, Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME), Government of India at the SMEs SAARC Conclave on "Reaching Out : SMEs of SAARC Countries" organised by PHD Chamber along with Konrad Adenauer Stiftung-KAS.

Mr. Rai said that the MSME sector employees about 6 crore people, contributes 40 per cent in the country's exports.  Issues like credit flow and other problems faced by the MSME sector in wake of the global economic slowdown will be discussed in the meeting.

Mr. Rai informed that the 11-member Task Force has been asked to draw up an agenda for action within three months. Beside Mr. Rai the other members of the Task Force include Planning Commission Member Arun Maira, Finance Secretary Ashok Chawla, and Labour Secretary P C Chaturvedi.

The sector is seeking bank loans at par with the farm sector or at less than 8 per cent.

Besides, the industry wants the exemption limit, under the General Excise Exemption Scheme, be raised from Rs.1.50 crore to Rs.3 crore.

On the issue of procurement by PSUs from the MSMEs, Rai said most of the departments have agreed that the state-owned firms should procure 20 per cent of their requirements from the sector.

This conclave is being attended by delegates of all the seven SAARC Countries – Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

Dr. Beatrice Gorawantschy, Resident Representative of Konrad Adenauer Stiftung-KAS, emphasised the importance of this two day SAARC Conclave as it would provide a common platform for all the SAARC countries to discuss the problems and ways to go ahead for common trade.

In his welcome remarks Mr. Ashok Kajaria, Senior Vice President, PHD Chamber said that the SMEs in SAARC nations contribute significantly towards economic growth and are crucial for poverty reduction due to their contribution to employment and income generation. Also most SMEs in the SAARC region are unable to fully utilize their market opportunities as they do not have adequate access to information on market developments, prices, exports and financial possibilities and the regulatory environment is not conducive for growth.

"SAARC nations should come together and provide a favourable business environment which would foster growth of SMEs within the region." added Mr. Kajaria.

Mr. Krishan Kalra, Secretary General, PHD Chamber said, "It is important for industry in South Asia to work collectively for consolidating their strengths so that they are able to effectively compete in the regional and global markets. In fact, it could be said that the need for facilitative policies which would promote constructive engagement between SMEs in the SAARC region has never been as intensely felt as at the present juncture of economic slowdown".