Govt Lifts Ban on Corporates & Private Players in MSME Sector Nitin Gadkari ensures of no trust deficit between the government and industry

Soon after being appointed for the second term, NDA-II has dived into work full-force. As Nirmala Sitharaman prepares to present her maiden budget as the Finance Minister, other Union Ministers have also taken charge of their respective departments to resume work from where their predecessors left.

Minister of Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), Nitin Gadkari recently addressed 100 CEOs from across the country at CII National Conference and urged them to join hands in bringing innovative ways of financing the industry.

A Ray of Hope

In a welcome step, he announced that the ban on the entry of corporates and private players in MSME sector has been lifted to pave way for the formation of 700 clusters in order to reduce dependence on imports as well as for job creation.

Gadkari shared that there's been a need to move from import substitution to export promotion for a long time and invited the private sector players to engage with MSMEs. "We will encourage large enterprises to build an ecosystem of ancillaries and vendors so that MSME can contribute to producing at home," he said.

Urging the industry to join hands, he stated, "Government will support the export of goods that MSME can produce, engage in skill development by building ITIs in all areas." Notably, red-tapism has been removed from the operational structure and transparency is said to be promoted.

Innovation is the Key

MSME as a sector has huge growth and employment potential. Urging the industry players to come forward with suggestions, the minister said a new website by the name of "Bank of Idea and Innovation' is likely to be launched next week where the industry will be invited to give ideas for anything focused on development and growth.

Terming innovation as the key to development, he ensured easy availability of capital is of prime importance for the sector and urged the industry players to come forward for finding innovative sources of financing other than banks, especially for the MSME sector.

Government is investor-friendly and wants to support industry for employment, growth and exports. "It (government) is constantly striving to usher in more reforms and industry should come forward to be a partner in this journey of growth."

No Bad Vibe

Unlike popular belief, Gadkari refuses the presence of trust deficit between the government and industry. "Government is very positive and has faith and trust in the industry. We are bringing improvements as per suggestions of industry and request for more recommendations," he said.

Government is apparently planning technology centres to enhance skill to become not only a supporter but also the facilitator of entrepreneurs. "Anyone can set up clusters anywhere," Gadkari stated while sharing that rural and agriculture sector has played a significant role in India's growth and development.

"Besides the urban areas, the industry should also focus and give ideas on the social-economic transformation of rural areas," he said, stressing that sectors like real estate and bio-fuel generation should be helped to pull them out of their current predicament.