Some hits and a few misses for MSMEs this Budget

Industry representatives welcome schemes but say not all their demands were considered

The Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in Tamil Nadu said the State Budget presented by the DMK government was good but could have done more to help the sector, which has been struggling for the past eight years.

On the positives, S. Mahesh Kumar, president of the Federation of Indian Coir Exporters’ Association, said, “Kerala has a State Coir Federation to support cottage and small coir units. This is the first time the Tamil Nadu government has announced a project for the coir industry in its Budget. This will help the State become a leader in coir exports. For a long time we have been asking for a coir park in Pollachi, and it should be considered.” 

According to K.V. Karthik, president of the Southern India Engineering Manufacturers’ Association, the announcement of an additional 1 lakh free agricultural connections for farmers increases the scope for the pump industry in Coimbatore, which has been suffering from low demand.

On the announcements for MSMEs, industries in Coimbatore said the proposal for the industrial park in Coimbatore and seed funding for start-ups would push growth. “Start-ups in incubation facilities will be able to source more funds with the support of seed funding,” said M.V. Ramesh Babu, president of the Coimbatore District Small Industries’ Association.

K. Mariappan, president of the Tamil Nadu Small and Tiny Industries Association (TANSTIA), pointed out that unfortunately, there was no announcement about the promotion of defence hubs in Chennai, Salem, Hosur and Tiruchi because several MSMEs had plans to expand their units into these regions.

“TANSTIA requested for freehold sales deeds instead of lease deeds to the industrial plots in SIDCO and SIPCOT industrial estates, but it was not considered. Similarly, a corpus fund of ₹500 crore for the estate infrastructure and maintenance fund for upgradation and maintenance of the Tamil Nadu Small Industries Development Corporation Limited estate was announced but yet to be implemented,” he added.