MSME Ministry's 2023 Year-End Review

Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) sector, with more than 6.30 crore enterprises, has emerged as a highly vibrant and dynamic sector of the Indian economy, fostering entrepreneurship and generating self-employment opportunities at comparatively lower capital cost, next only to agriculture. The Ministry of MSME, Government of India promotes growth and development of the sector, including Khadi, Village and Coir industries, by implementing various schemes/programmes towards credit support, technological assistance, infrastructure development, skill development and training, enhancing competitiveness and market assistance. Organizations, working under the ambit of the Ministry include Office of Development Commissioner (MSME), Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC), Coir Board, National Small Industries Corporation Ltd. (NSIC), National Institute for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (ni-msme) and Mahatma Gandhi Institute for Rural Industrialization (MGIRI). The Ministry has a vast network of field formations spread across the length and breadth of the country to support MSMEs, which include MSME Development and Facilitation Offices (MSME-DFO), Branch MSME-DFOs, MSME Testing Centres, MSME-Testing Stations and Technology Centres (Tool Room & Technical Institutions) and field offices of the KVIC, Coir Board and NSIC.

The major achievements of the Ministry of MSME for the period from 1st January, 2023 to 31st December, 2023 are detailed as follows:

Udyam registration has accelerated from 1.31 crore (as on 31st December,2022) with further 88.89 lakh registrations during the period January, 2023 to December, 2023, taking the total number of registrations to 2.19 crore.

The Ministry, in association with Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI), has launched a portal, Udyam Assist Platform (UAP), on 11th January,2023, for bringing Informal Micro Enterprises (IMEs) in the formal ambit. Till 31st December, 2023, around 1.11 crore IMEs have onboarded on UAP.

The Government of India has notified that the certificate issued on the Udyam Assist Platform to ‘Informal Micro Enterprises’ shall be treated at par with Udyam Registration Certificate for the purpose of availing Priority Sector Lending (PSL) benefits. This has helped the registered IMEs to avail the benefits of PSL.

Under the Chairpersonship of Hon'ble Minister of MSME, the 19th Meeting of National Board for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises was held on 11th January, 2023at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi during which deliberations were made for strengthening the MSME Sector.

1. PM VISHWAKARMA

A new scheme, called ‘PM Vishwakarma’, aims at improving the quality as well as the reach of products and services of artisans and craftspeople and to ensure that the ‘Vishwakarmas’ are integrated into the domestic and global value chains. The Scheme was announced on 1st February, 2023 in the Budget Speech for the financial year 2023-24. The Scheme was launched by the Hon’ble Prime Minister on 17th September, 2023.

It is the goal of this Scheme to offer holistic end-to-end support to the Vishwakarmas, i.e. the artisans and craftspeople, to enable them to move up the value chain in their respective trades. It will bring a qualitative shift in the way these occupations are practiced by artisans and craftspeople and this will uplift their socio-economic status as well as their quality of life.

PM Vishwakarma is a Central Sector Scheme, fully funded by the Government of India, with an initial outlay of Rs. 13,000 crore for an initial period of five years i.e. during 2023-24 to 2027-28.

Achievements:

As on 30th December, 2023, a total of 48.80 lakh enrolments have been made under PM Vishwakarma. A total of 1.32 lakh applications have been registered successfully under the Scheme. The registered applicants will undergo ‘Basic Training’ for 5 days. After successful training, the applicants who have chosen the credit support, will receive the benefit of collateral free credit.

2. ACHIEVEMENTS UNDER OTHER SCHEMES/INITIATIVES OF THE MINISTRY

Achievements under other major schemes implemented by the Ministry of MSME are detailed below:

1. 1. Access to Credit
      1. Prime Minister’s Employment Generation Programme (PMEGP)

Prime Minister’s Employment Generation Programme (PMEGP) is a credit linked subsidy scheme for providing employment opportunities through establishment of micro-enterprises in the non-farm sector. Under the Scheme, Margin Money (Subsidy) is provided to beneficiaries availing loan from banks for setting up new enterprises. The maximum project cost admissible for setting up of new project is Rs. 50 lakh in manufacturing sector and Rs. 20 lakh in Service Sector.  Subsidy of 25% and 35% of project cost is admissible for Special Categories, including SC, ST, OBC, Minorities, Women, Ex-Servicemen, Transgenders, Differently-abled, NER, Aspirational Districts, Hill and Border areas, and 15% and 25% of project cost for General Category applicants for urban and rural areas respectively. Units in Aspirational Districts and Transgenders have been included in the Special Category. Geo-tagging of the PMEGP units have been initiated for capturing the details of the products and services offered by the units and to create market linkages for them. Free 2-day Entrepreneurship Development Programme (EDP) training is being provided to prospective entrepreneurs.

Since its inception in 2008 and till 30th November, 2023, more than 9.29 lakh micro-enterprises have been assisted across the country with disbursement of Margin Money subsidy of Rs. 34,517 crore, generating a total estimated employment for around 78.36 lakh persons.

During the period from January 2023 to November 2023, the number of units assisted is 85,228, with MM subsidy disbursement of Rs. 3,116.78 crore, generating a total estimated employment for around 6.80 lakh persons.

(ii)        Credit Guarantee Scheme:

The Credit Guarantee for Micro and Small Enterprises(CGTMSE) was introduced in the year 2000 to facilitate credit access to MSEs in the country.  This scheme has been revamped in the year 2023 and the following features have been added in the scheme w.e.f. 1st April, 2023:

1. Enhancement of ceiling limit of Guarantee coverage from Rs. 2 crore to Rs. 5 crore;
2. The Annual Guarantee fees reduced from 0.75% to 0.37%;  and
3. Increase in the threshold limit from Rs. 5 Lakh to Rs. 10 lakh for waiver of legal action.

For the period from January, 2023 to November, 2023, a total of 12.50 lakh  guarantees  were  approved, amounting  to  Rs. 1.46 lakh  crore.

(iii)      SRI Fund

SRI Fund is aimed at providing growth capital to the deserving and eligible units of MSME Sector.  From 1st January, 2023 to 30th November, 2023, 14 daughter funds have been empaneled with NSIC Venture Capital Fund Limited (NVCFL) - a Mother Fund, by way of investing more than Rs.3658 crore, thus assisting 242 potential MSEs.

0. 2. Infrastructure & Capacity Building
1. Micro and Small Enterprises Cluster Development Programme (MSE-CDP)

The Micro and Small Enterprises Cluster Development Programme (MSE-CDP) was launched in the year 2003. The objective of the scheme is to enhance the productivity and competitiveness of Micro and Small Enterprises (MSEs) by extending financial assistance for establishment of ‘Common Facility Centers (CFCs)’ and creation and upgradation of industrial estates. Establishment of Flatted Factory Complexes is also supported under the scheme.

Since inception of the scheme, a total of 580 projects have been approved and out of these, 308 projects have been completed.

Out of the 580 approved projects, 40 projects, with a total project cost of nearly Rs. 560 crore, with Government of India’s assistance of Rs. 386 crore were approved during the period from January, 2023 to December, 2023.

2. Scheme of Fund for Regeneration of Traditional Industries (SFURTI)

The Scheme was launched in 2005-06 and aims towards organizing traditional artisans into collectives/clusters for product development and diversification through value addition and to promote traditional sectors and increase income of artisans in a sustainable manner. The scheme was revamped in 2014-15.

The main objective of the scheme is to organize the artisans and traditional industries into clusters for better competitiveness, for enhancing employment opportunities and to increase marketability of products of such clusters.

A total of 513 clusters have been approved and out of this, 389 clusters have become functional.

During January, 2023 to December, 2023, 89 clusters have become functional providing benefit to 50,166 artisans in 25 States. 15 clusters have been approved with a total Government of India assistance of Rs. 40.01 crore directly benefitting 8,875 artisans.

3. ‘A Scheme for Promoting Innovation, Rural Industry & Entrepreneurship’ (ASPIRE)

A Scheme for Promotion of Innovation, Rural Industry and Entrepreneurship (ASPIRE) aims to create employment opportunities in the agro-rural sector. There are 2 components under ASPIRE:

1. Livelihood Business Incubator (LBI): An entity set up for imparting skill development and incubation programs for promoting entrepreneurship and employment generation in agro-rural sector with special focus on rural and underserved areas. The programs offered by the LBIs aim to enable the beneficiaries to set up their own enterprises or get suitably employed in the nearby industrial cluster. The main objective of LBI is to generate employment opportunity by facilitating formal, scalable micro-enterprise creation, and to provide skilling, up-skilling and re-skilling for unemployed, existing self-employed/ wage earners in new technologies.

During the period from January, 2023 to December, 2023, four new Livelihood Business Incubator (LBIs) were approved under ASPIRE and 25,468 beneficiaries were trained, out of which 1,458 were wage employed. Additionally, 225 micro-enterprises were established via the incubation programs conducted in the LBIs.

2. ASPIRE Fund of Funds (FoF): Managed by SIDBI, the FoF was created with a focus to invest through Alternate Investment Funds (AIFs), in early-stage scalable start-ups in need of support and nurturing to succeed in developing technology and business enterprise in the areas of innovation, entrepreneurship, developing forward and backward linkages with multiple value chain of manufacturing and service delivery in the agro-based sector. The total corpus of SIDBI FoF is Rs. 310 crore.

Under Fund of Fund component of the ASPIRE scheme, during January, 2023 to December, 2023, 5 new Alternative Investment Funds (AIFs), were supported with a commitment of Rs. 145 crore taking the total commitment to Rs.217.50 crore to 11 AIFs, out of the total corpus of Rs. 310 crore.

4.3       Procurement & Marketing Support

1. 1. 1. Public Procurement Policy for Micro and Small Enterprises

The Ministry of MSME, Government of India notified the Public Procurement Policy for Micro and Small Enterprises (MSEs), Order, 2012, which mandates 25% annual procurement from MSEs by Central Ministries/Departments/Central Public Sector Enterprises (CPSEs), including 4% from MSEs owned by SC/ST and 3% from MSEs owned by Women entrepreneurs. A total of 358 items are reserved for exclusive procurement from MSEs.

Vis-a-vis the minimum 25% annual procurement, the participating CPSEs and Departments procured a total amount of Rs. 37,501.25 crore (34.82%) from MSEs during the year 2023-24 (as on 31st December, 2023), from which 130 MSEs benefitted.

1. 1. 2. Procurement and Marketing Support (PMS) Scheme

The scheme promotes new market access initiatives and enhances the marketability of products and services in the MSME sector. During the year 2023, Ministry of MSME participated in 253 Trade Fairs/Exhibitions across the country benefiting around 9,500 MSEs.

India International Trade Fair (IITF), 2023

Hon’ble Minister of MSME inaugurated “MSME pavilion” under the theme "PM Vishwakarma" at 42nd India International Trade Fair (IITF), 2023 held during 14th to 27th, November, 2023. 195 stalls were allocated to Micro and Small Enterprises (MSEs), with participation from 29 States/UTs.

This time more than 85% of stalls were allocated to first time participants. Stalls were allocated free of cost to women, SC/ST, NER, Aspirational District beneficiaries. Representation of Women entrepreneurs, SC/ST entrepreneurs and enterprises from Aspirational districts in the event was as below: -

MSME entrepreneurs show-cased their products in different sectors, including Textiles, Handloom, Embroidery works, Custom Tailoring, Handicrafts, Gems & Jewellery, Leather Footwear, Games & Toys, Bamboo crafts, Cane items, Furniture, Ceramics & Pottery, Food products, Cosmetics, Chemical Products, Mechanical items, etc.

1. 1. 3. Export Promotion

The Ministry of MSME has developed a dedicated support system for export promotion from MSME Sector by establishing 59 Export Facilitation Cells (EFCs) in its field institutions, namely, MSME-Development and Facilitation Offices, MSME Technology Centres and MSME Testing Centres. Out of these 59 EFCs, 7 EFCs were established during January, 2023 to December, 2023. The EFCs are facilitating the MSMEs by disseminating information on comprehensive support to MSME exporters, understanding end-to-end process and documentation involved in exporting i.e. common export documents, transportation documents, compliance documents, certificate of origin, certificate required for shipment of specific goods, invoicing etc.

1. 4. Access to Technology
      1. MSME Champions

The objective of the MSME Champions Scheme is to pick up clusters and enterprises and modernize their processes, reduce wastages, sharpen business competitiveness, and facilitate their National and Global reach and excellence. The Scheme has three components, namely, ‘MSME-Sustainable’ (ZED), ‘MSME-Competitive’ (LEAN) and ‘MSME-Innovative’ (Incubation, Design, IPR).

MSME Innovative scheme was launched on 10th March, 2022 and under this component, 643 Host Institutes (HIs) have been approved. Hon’ble Minister (MSME) announced the winners of ‘MSME Idea Hackathon-2.0(theme based)’ during the ‘Udyami Bharat’ programme held at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi on 27th June, 2023. Under the Idea Hackathon 3.0 (Women), 18,888 ideas have been received and under ‘Design’ component, 20 MoUs have been signed with IISc, Bangalore, 7 IITs, 12 NITs as Implementing Agencies and 24 Professional Design/Student Projects have been approved. Under ‘IPR’ component, 20 Intellectual Property Facilitation Centres (IPFCs) have been set up, 74 Patents, 942 trademarks have been approved and 48 Design registration have been sanctioned.

MSME-Sustainable (ZED) Certification scheme was launched on 28th April, 2022.  A total of 4.41 lakh MSMEs have been registered and 79,546 Bronze, 275 Silver and 271 Gold certifications have been awarded to MSMEs.

MSME Competitive (LEAN) Scheme was launched on 10th March, 2023. So far, 6,561 MSMEs have been registered, 6,453 MSMEs have taken the pledge and 3,200 MSMEs with ‘Basic Lean’ have been certified, up to December, 2023.

1. 1. 2. Technology Centres

Technology Centres (also known as Tool Room & Technical Institutions) are providing trained personnel, consultancy in tooling and upgradation of technologies/products in sectors like Foundry & Forging, Electronics, Electrical Measuring Instruments, Fragrance &Flavour, Glass, Sport Goods, and Footwear designing, besides conducting skill development training programmes.

Contribution by Technology Centres of the Ministry in ‘Chandrayaan-3’ and ‘Aditya L1’ Mission:

India's third lunar mission, ‘Chandrayaan-3’ was successfully launched on 14th July, 2023. In this remarkable mission, the following Tool Rooms under the Ministry made their contribution towards realizing ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’:

Central Tool Room & Training Centre (CTTC), Bhubaneswar manufactured and supplied 437 types of precision components (around 54,000 components) for the Mission.

Institute for Design of Electrical Measuring Instruments (IDEMI), Mumbai has manufactured and supplied guiding device used in turbocharger assembly of the Chandrayaan-3.

India’s first Solar Mission, ‘Aditya L1’ was successfully launched on 2nd September, 2023. In this remarkable mission, Central Tool Room & Training Centre (CTTC), Bhubaneswar under the Ministry has made its contribution by manufacturing different types of precision components like regulator, flow control valves, gyroscope, temperature sensor and navigation parts.

30,445 Units have been assisted by 18 Tool Rooms & Technical Institutions during January, 2023 to November, 2023. To provide impetus to Atmanirbhar Bharat, key import substitution initiatives have been undertaken and accordingly some Tool Rooms have started indigenous manufacturing of the major components like Progressive tool used for Fold Over Layer Gasket manufacturing, Bracket  by 3D Printing Metal Technology for using in SUKHOI-30 Air Craft, Piston Shock Absorber for Bike, Hot sub entry nozzle (HSEN) Trolley, Hot sub entry nozzle (HSEN) Trolley,  Press tools for producing vane components,  Mould of skates brake and skates roller, Cap gripper by reverse engineering, Conveyor belt roller used in compression moulding cap  manufacturing machine, which were earlier being imported from other countries.

Under World Bank assisted “Technology Centre Systems Programme” (TCSP), 15 new Technology Centres (TC) are being established and modernization of the existing TCs across the country is being done. TCs at Bhiwadi, Vizag, Bhopal, Rohtak and Puducherry have started assisting MSMEs and imparting skill training. During January to December, 2023, 13,600 students have been trained and 700 MSMEs have been assisted by these TCs. All India Council of Technical Education (AICTE) approval has been received for starting 4 new Diploma Courses at TC, Sitarganj. M/s IRCON, a CPSE has been hired for balance procurement in TCs.

To augment the network of Technology Centres, under the Scheme, "Establishment of New Technology Centres / Extension Centres", 20 Technology Centres (TCs) and 100 Extension Centres (ECs) are being established across the country under Hub and Spoke model, to provide various services like technology support, skilling, incubation and consultancy to MSMEs and creation of new MSMEs. So far, 21 Extension Centres (ECs) have become operational.

0. 5. Skilling
1. 1,579 programmes have been conducted, benefiting 84,716 persons,  under the scheme, Entrepreneurship Skill Development Programme (ESDP),  from  January, 2023 to December, 2023.

• (ii) Further, 3,07,583 persons have been imparted skill training through various organizations under the Ministry i.e. Tool Rooms & Technical Institutions, New Technology Centres established under TCSP, National Small Industries Corporation (NSIC) Ltd., Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC), National Institute for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (ni-msme) and Coir board from January,2023 to December, 2023.
  6. Promotion of MSMEs among SC/STs and in NER
     1. National SC-ST Hub (NSSH)

The scheme is aimed at promoting entrepreneurship amongst the SC/ST and to fulfil the 4% procurement mandate by the CPSEs as laid down in the Central Government Public Procurement Policy and to boost entrepreneurship among SC/STs. During January to December, 2023, a total of 6 Mega Events (NSSH Conclaves) were organized in the SC/ST dominant areas i.e.  Mumbai (Maharashtra), Gumla (Jharkhand), Jhabua (Madhya Pradesh), Itanagar (Arunachal Pradesh), Shillong (Meghalaya) and Jalaun (Uttar Pradesh) in which 3,988 existing/aspiring SC-ST entrepreneurs participated.

The scheme made a positive impact among target beneficiaries by way of professional support in upgrading their skills, facilitating market linkages and handholding support which resulted in a 15-fold increase in public procurement from SC/ST MSEs (in terms of value) i.e., Rs. 99.37 crore in 2015-16 to Rs. 1,543 crore in 2022-23 as reported on the MSME Sambandh portal and from January, 2023 to December, 2023 procurement value from SC/ST MSEs is Rs. 1328 crore.

1. 1. 2. Promotion of MSMEs in NER and Sikkim Scheme

The Scheme includes components viz., (i) Setting up of new and modernization of existing Mini Technology Centre, Development of new and existing Industrial Estates and (ii) Development of Tourism Sector. Under the Scheme, 4 projects (2 in Mizoram, 1 each at Tripura and Assam) have been completed for development of Industrial Estates with Government of India contribution of Rs. 28.19 crore, during the year 2023.  14 Industrial Estates/Flatted Factory Complex projects have been approved with total project cost of Rs. 204.41 crore and approved Government of India’s grant of Rs. 158.43 crore (8-Assam, 3-Meghalaya, 2-Sikkim & 1-Arunachal Pradesh) during the year, 2023.

1. 7. RAMP Scheme

Raising and Accelerating MSME Performance Programme (RAMP) Scheme aims at strengthening institutions and governance at the Centre and State, improving Centre-State linkages and partnerships and improving access of MSMEs to market and credit, technology upgradation and addressing the issues of delayed payments and greening of MSMEs. Meetings of the National MSME Council have been held on 10th May, 2023 and 20th December, 2023. Strategic Investment Plans (SIPs) of 10 States viz. Tamil Nadu, Odisha, Sikkim, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Mizoram, Andhra Pradesh, Bihar and Karnataka have been approved with a total outlay of Rs. 1143.55 crore. States have been disbursed the first tranche of Government of India’s  grants.

Three sub-schemes were launched under RAMP viz., (i) MSE-GIFT (MSE Green Investment and Financing for Transformation, with an outlay of Rs. 478 crore for providing interest subvention and guarantee for MSE loans for identified green technologies) (ii) MSE-SPICE (MSE Scheme for Promotion of Investment in Circular Economy), with an outlay of Rs. 472.50 crore for providing 25% capital subsidy to MSEs for adopting circular economy (iii) MSE Scheme on Online Dispute Resolution for Delayed Payments with an outlay of Rs.188.97 crore.

ZED certification has been made free for MSME women entrepreneurs.

4.8       International Cooperation Scheme

Under the scheme, financial assistance is provided on reimbursement basis to the eligible Central/State Government organizations/Industry Associations to facilitate participation of MSMEs in the international exhibitions held abroad, organizing international conference in India as well as reimbursement of various costs involved in export of goods and services with the aim of technology upgradation, modernization, joint venture etc.

Signing of MoUs

• A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), for renewal of cooperation in the field of MSMEs, has been signed between National Small Industries Corporation Ltd. (NSIC), a CPSE under the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) and Korea SMEs and Startups Agency (KOSME) of Republic of Korea on 27th February, 2023 in New Delhi.

Virtual B2B Meetings were organized between Indian and South Korean Enterprises in cooperation with counterpart organization, KOSME, South Korea in June, 2023. A Global Technology Exchange Programme, 2023 was organized in New Delhi to create business linkages between MSMEs of India and South Korea. Further, participation of 8 MSMEs in International exhibition, Korea Metal Week at Kintex, South Korea in October was facilitated under IC Scheme.

• An MoU was signed between Ministry of MSME and Jute Products Development and Export Promotion Council (JPDEPC) on 7th August, 2023 in New Delhi to designate JPDEPC as one of the implementing agency for first intervention (i.e. reimbursement of RCMC charges) of CBFTE (Capacity Building for First Time Exporters) component of IC Scheme.  JPDEPC is the 20th EPC to sign with the Ministry of MSME, Government of India for this intervention.
• 2nd India-Taiwan SME JWG (Joint Working Group) meeting was held between Ministry of Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises (MSME), India, and Small and Medium Enterprise Administration (SMEA), Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA), Taiwan, on 5th September, 2023 in New Delhi. During the meeting, both sides shared information on SME development policies especially w.r.t. digital transformation, formalization, public procurement, delayed payment etc. to support the SMEs and also deliberated on possible areas of collaboration in creating networking opportunities for MSMEs, promoting technology transfer and capacity building in different sectors. Subsequently, the Indian side has suggested few sectors such as- Electronics and semiconductors, Machine Tools, Automotive components, Smart Technologies and Renewable Energy for the 3rd India-Taiwan SME Cooperation Forum to be hosted by Taiwan side in 2024.
• 2nd Meeting of India-Taiwan SME Cooperation Forum was held on 7th September, 2023 in Mumbai, India. The focus sector of the meeting was food processing sector. Apart from Government officials, MSME representatives of both sides also took part in the said meeting for exploring business tie-ups, technology collaborations etc. The Forum was attended by 43 MSMEs. The forum provided an excellent networking opportunity for enterprises of both countries to explore sustainable business alliances. Discussions were held about key topics related to food industry, including importance of automation and AI in transforming the global food industry, future trends including Smart and green production, the importance of food safety, best practices and technologies being adopted in the food processing. Also, Business (B2B) meetings were organized between 25 Indian enterprises and 8 Taiwanese enterprises, in products, such as, food processing equipments/machinery, Freeze Dried Vegetables and Freeze Dried Fruit Powders etc. These B2B meetings helped in creating business linkages amongst enterprises of India and Taiwan.

• 2nd meeting of India-Japan Joint Working Group (JWG) on MSME Cooperation, constituted under the India-Japan Industrial Competitiveness Partnership Roadmap (IJICP), was held on 13th July, 2023 in virtual mode. During the meeting, both sides discussed the proposed skill development/training in 5S and Kaizen at Ministry of MSME’s Technology Centres (TC) situated at Bhiwadi & Puducherry, by Association for Overseas Technical Cooperation and Sustainable partnership (AOTS) of Japan. Pursuant to the said meeting, two-day training programmes on "5S and Kaizen" have been conducted by Japanese experts at MSME- TC at Bhiwadi and Puducherry in September, 2023, wherein representatives from these TCs, academia, startups and MSME representatives participated.

• Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) in association with India SME Forum organized International SME Convention 2023 during 19-21 March, 2023. Over 1700 Indian delegates, 180+ international delegates, 65 speakers from various countries and 9 Union and State Ministers from India attended the event. 1305 Trade Connect forms were filed for business matchmaking that facilitated networking, collaboration and trade partnership between Indian and International SMEs.

• 12th Mekong Ganga Cooperation (MGC) Foreign Ministers’ Meeting (FMM) was held in Bangkok, Thailand on 16th July, 2023 and was attended by India, Cambodia, Thailand, Myanmar, Vietnam and Lao PDR. During the meeting, the Ministers agreed to establish the Lead country Mechanism for streamlining of the cooperation in 10 priority areas, namely, Tourism, Culture, Education, Transport & Communication, Health and Traditional Medicine, Agriculture and allied sectors, MSMEs, Water Resources Management, Science and Technology and Skill Development and Capacity Building to be coordinated through an Expert Working Group (EWG) for each priority area.

5.         Promotion of Khadi, Village Industries and Coir Sector

1. 1. 1. Khadi and Village Industries

As a part of rationalization exercise, the Government of India merged all the existing KVI schemes/sub-schemes/components and brought these under one umbrella scheme, namely, Khadi and Gramodyog Vikas Yojana (KGVY) in 2019 and accordingly, the guidelines of the Scheme were issued by the Ministry on 8th November, 2019, with the following three components:

1. Khadi Vikas Yojana - This sub-scheme offers end to end support in promoting Khadi Industry in the country, with the aim of increasing Khadi Production, sales, number of artisans and also employment opportunities.  Under this, financial assistance is also provided for improving Infrastructure for Khadi Production.
2. Gramodyog Vikas Yojana - This sub-scheme focuses on promoting traditional skills of rural artisans, with the main aim of meeting the developmental needs of the Village Industry sector. 
3. Khadi Grant – This is meant for meeting establishment expenses of KVIC Officers/employees.

Under the Modified Market Development Assistance (MMDA) Scheme, 1,256 Khadi Institutions (KIs) have been supported benefitting 1,45,758 artisans with a fund disbursement of Rs. 217.17 crore.

Under the Interest   Subsidy   Eligibility   Certificate (ISEC) Scheme, 1,314 Khadi Institutions (KIs) have been supported with a fund disbursement of Rs. 35.32 crore.

Under the Workshed Scheme for Khadi Artisans, 1,150 Work sheds have been supported with a fund disbursement of Rs. 5.55 crore.

Under the strengthening of Infrastructure of Existing Weak Khadi Institutions   and Assistance   for   Marketing   Infrastructure, 40 Khadi Institutions (KIs) have been strengthened, 65 Sales outlets have been renovated with a fund disbursement of Rs. 2.22 crore and Rs. 10.51 crore, respectively.

Gramodyog Vikas Yojana (Village Industry Programme)

Under the Kumhaar Sashaktikaran Programme under Mineral Based Industry, 1,862 Electric Potter Wheels have been distributed with a fund disbursement of Rs. 10.94 crore.

Under the Honey Mission/beekeeping, under Agro Based and Food Processing Industry, 15,310 Bee Boxes have been distributed benefitting 1,531 beneficiaries with a fund disbursement of Rs. 8.93 crore.

1. 1. 2. Coir Sector

Indian Coir sector achieved an export turnover of 12,65,000 MT valued at Rs. 3,992 crore during the period from January, 2023 to December, 2023. Employment generation during the period of January, 2023 to November, 2023 was 1824, thus making the cumulative employment generation 7,47,827. The overall production of coir  fibre  had reached 7,31,000 MTs during this period.

3. ACHIEVEMENTS OF NSIC & MGIRI
   1. 1. National Small Industries Corporation (NSIC)

NSIC provides credit support for raw material procurement by making the payment to suppliers in Raw Material Assistance scheme against Bank Guarantee. During the period of January 2023 to November 2023, credit facilitation of Rs. 6,165 crore was done.

NSIC forms consortia of small units manufacturing the same products, thereby pooling in their capacity, which provides comfort level to MSEs as suppliers and also to buyers. The Corporation applies for tenders on behalf of consortia of MSEs and secures orders for bulk quantities. These orders are then distributed amongst MSEs in line with their production capacity. During January,2023 to November, 2023, NSIC has participated in 553 tenders valuing Rs. 291.71 crore and executed tenders amounting to Rs. 96.92 crore.

NSIC also facilitates E-Marketing Service through MSME Global Mart Web Portal (www.msmemart.com). During the period January,2023 to November, 2023, 10,399 members were enrolled.

1. 1. 2. Mahatma Gandhi Institute for Rural Industrialization (MGIRI)

Mahatma Gandhi Institute for Rural Industrialization (MGIRI), Wardha is a National Autonomous Institute, established in 2009, under the aegis of the Ministry of MSME, Government of India.

MGIRI has departments for Khadi and Textile Industries (K&T), Bio-processing and Herbal based Industries (B&H), Rural Chemical Industries (RCI), Rural Crafts and Engineering (RC&E), Rural Infrastructure and Energy (REI) and Management and Systems (M&S).

During January, 2023 to December, 2023, MGIRI undertook skill development training programmes for various sectors and appropriate synergy was established for such programmes with State Governments and organizations like KVIC.

7.         GRIEVANCE REDRESSAL PORTAL

Hon’ble Prime Minister launched an online “CHAMPIONS” Portal on 1st June, 2020, which covers many aspects of e-governance, including grievance redressal and handholding of MSMEs.

On the occasion of ‘International MSME Day’, 2023, on  27thJune 2023, CHAMPIONS 2.0 was launched by Hon’ble Minister of MSME. The portal has been upgraded to enhance user friendliness and grievance resolution turn-around-time.

Since inception, CHAMPIONS Portal has received 76,205 grievances, out of which 75,815 (99.48%) have been replied on the portal.