Perspective: UDYAMI Bharat: MSME Day | 27 June, 2025

0:01 [Music] Namaskar. Haron, welcome to Sunset TV. I am Namita Singh and you're watching Perspective. Micro, small and medium enterprises are the backbone of India's economy and a key pillar of global growth. In India, over 7.4 4 crore msmemes contribute nearly 30% to the GDP account for almost half of our exports and provide livelihoods to more than 20 cr people second only to agriculture they drive grassroots entrepreneurship create jobs and foster inclusive development globally too mmemes form 90%

0:46 of all businesses and employ over the half of world's workforce recognizing their critical role the United Nations designated June 27th as international MSME day. The theme of this year's MSME day is enhancing the role of MSMES as drivers of sustainable growth and innovation. So as we mark MSME day 2025, India acknowledges the vital role of small and medium enterprises as engines of growth, innovation and inclusive development. So what are the key government initiatives for the sector? What challenges do MSMES still face and what is the way forward to strengthen this vital sector for a sustainable future? To discuss this and much more, I'm joined by a very eminent

1:32 panel of guests. I'm pleased to welcome three distinguished guests joining us virtually. I'm delighted to welcome Mr. Pravin Kandelwal, Member of Parliament and former Secretary General, Confederation of All India Traders. Welcome sir. Thank you. We also have Mr. Ashoke Seagel, co-chairman CII, National MSME Council. Welcome sir. Thank you very much for having us on your show. I'm also delighted to welcome Miss Rrookmani Atri. She's joint development commissioner, Ministry of MSME. Welcome ma'am. Thank you so much. Uh thank you all for being here and welcome to Sunset TV. So let me begin the discussion with you Mr. Kandel Wal. India's MSME sector is

2:19 the backbone of its manufacturing and industrial growth. It contributes 30% to the GDP, 45% to exports and employs over 28 crore people. So from Charkha to Chandrean, MSMES are everywhere making them the second largest employer after agriculture. For our viewers, if you could walk us through the journey of this sector and how do you see the sector evolve over the years? Well, uh uh the significance of MSME sector in our country truly uh established the fact that uh more than 9 cr MSMES are providing direct employment to more than 30 cr people in India and

3:04 after taking over by Prime Minister Narendra Modi a lot has been done for the MSME sector to grow leaps and bounds and we have seen the results. Now India has become fourth uh economy uh across the globe. So it is the result of uh hard work by MSNB sector which you rightly said that its contributions is very significant some something around 35% or so. So the contribution of MSME sector itself says that this sector this this sector needs more support policies of the government so that we can do much better than the corporate sector.

3:51 Definitely sir. So Mr. Seagel you know this year's MSME day theme enhancing the role of MSMES as drivers of sustainable growth and innovation highlights the sector's growing importance in achieving the sustainable development goals. So as India celebrates MSME day with a focus on sustainability, how does this theme align with the country's development priorities? I think sustainability is very much the theme for last couple of years and MSMES must be more sensitized to this which has been happening over the last couple of years that MSMES realize that it is not only running a business but looking after the entire environmental area around you which first of all must begin with your immediate neighborhood but

4:37 also your workers and think of the labor which is employed by you. what is the thing which they must have as well as as a sustainable and economic and environmentfriendly living space. So this is a partnership between MSMES the labor force which they employ and also the society or locality in which they live. Particularly since MSMES are have relatively small workforces in relation to the management there can be a very close relationship between them and all can work together and with the large employment which is there the MSMES can play a role in shaping the thinking of the large number of people which are employed and ESG is certainly a very important part of that. Okay. Okay. uh

5:26 Miss Atri you know MSMES are central to India's vision of becoming a self-reliant economy not just by creating jobs but by driving innovation boosting exports and supporting local supply chain and with over you know 6.5 crsmemes contributing significantly to the GDP and employment their role is becoming more strategic than ever so in your view how crucial will be this MSME sector be in realizing India's ambition of becoming a developed nation by 2014 47. Uh first of all, I would like to thank you uh for giving this opportunity for uh sharing my thoughts on this uh MSME day. Uh we had we had a a great uh uh

6:11 session with the honorable president today wherein she has uh shared her thoughts with us. Uh if you see there has been an attempt to bring um coherence and coordination among various parts of the government uh various ministries, central government, state government so that we can have a whole of government approach. If you see uh there have been two major initiatives of the ministry in the recent years uh in this direction. uh one is ramp scheme uh which is raising uh and accelerating MSME's performance wherein the central government through coordination with state government try to ensure tries to ensure that um all the support required

6:57 for the MSME sector is provided to them whether it is for the technology uh whether it is for the improvement in their techniques and uh production and and there are a number of a plethora of incentives included in that scheme like Mr. Seel was just uh stating that sustainability is a very important uh criteria for MSMES because you have to ensure the quality, you have to meet the standards, you have to reach to that level but of course there are financial constraints for the small businesses. So this is uh the ramp initiative has been doing well uh and in providing support to the states because all these industries are running in the uh setup of uh states. The second initiative has

7:42 been uh called PM Bishwa Karma initiative which is again with the thought that there are like lot of traditional uh artisans and crafts people in the country uh who are in that unorganized sector. So the uh the view of the honorable prime minister has been to bring them also into the focus and ensure uh that they are uh you know they are encouraged to become entrepreneur. they are able they should be the employment generator. So this this has also been amazing and and uh I would like to share just one figure with you under PM Vishwa karma we were hoping that uh there would be 30 lakhs enrollment over a period of 5 years but this has almost been reached I mean the

8:29 saturation has been reached within a short span of two years. So this is like really amazing. Of course there are uh a lot of other initiatives which we I would be discussing uh late. Definitely we will we will be discussing other initiatives and you rightly said that you know today president Murmu released several key initiatives from the MSME Patria aimed at uh knowledge sharing to a commemorative stamp marking 25 years of CGT MSE and the launch of online dispute resolution portal. So uh Mr. Dr. Kandelwal, how do these initiatives reflect the government's evolving approach towards empowering MSMES not just financially but also through innovation awareness and institutional support? Well, we must understand that the basic

9:17 fundamental policy statement of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi is small business is big business. Right? and in in in keeping that into consideration, the government of India under the leadership of honorable prime minister has brought so many schemes and if I talk about few of the schemes then of course uh Mudra Yojuna is one of the landmark scheme. It is skill development programs being run by the government. Then uh gem portal uh available for market outreach opport so so there are lot many schemes in the

10:04 pipeline which were never before um available for MSMES. So uh that is why the contribution of MSMES are becoming higher day by day and the relevancy of the MSMES in India itself shows that yes uh uh the MSMES are the backbone of Indian economy and therefore realizing this fact uh the the not only the central government but even the state government has been given many uh you know uh many initiatives uh to to run uh in their respective state. So

10:53 having coordination with these states the central government is all set to give big boost to MSMES and it is a reality now. Uh indeed you know MSME are the backbone of Indian economy but miss Atri I'd like to understand from you for our viewers we often hear about various government schemes and initiatives but for a lay person you know say someone in a village who wants to start a small shop or business how should they go about it? What are the first steps and more importantly how do people at the grassroot level especially the youth become aware of these opportunities and scheme for self-employment and entrepreneurship. See in accordance with the uh government's idea of uh making things easy for the

11:39 businesses. Udyam registration portal which is a online registration portal for MSMES. It was launched in 2020. So if you have a pan you can uh register it online. It's a very simple process. It's a just 10 15 minutes. Uh even CSC's they they provide support in make uh doing this registration. So we have this common uh service center across the country uh across the villages. So these people also provide support in this but understanding that there could be businesses which are really small uh which are at grassroot level and uh uh at a very very very small level and they need handholding and support. Uh the ministry has launched one initiative

12:25 called udyam assist platform. Okay. So this is done in accordance with SIDB. Uh wherein uh from the data based on banks and other uh designated agencies uh the the data is uh put up on the uh portal and and they are also given registration. So they they are also be uh they become eligible for availing lot of benefits of the uh scheme of the uh ministry. So once you have bought this UDAM registration or UDAM assist uh uh portal certificate uh assist uh platform certificate you have uh generated some sort of uh entitlement. So now you are eligible for availing the benefits of the scheme of the ministry. Uh now

13:10 coming to your second question, the um ministry of MSME uh has a setup through its development commissioner which is like additional secretary level uh rank officer and under this office across the states and across the union territories we have field offices. So there are officers who are uh you know coordinating with state governments who would be handholding and supporting the MSME. So anybody can go and reach out to these officials and they they they would be providing the uh information and uh you know support which is required. All the details, all the schemes etc are available on um online portal like DCMS website uh the uh ministries's website

13:56 but for if somebody wants like personal support and all they can reach out to our other field uh offices which are called development and uh facilitation offices DFOs. So they provide support. Uh now if you want credit support even uh any uh bank could be approached like you said this um CGTMSC has completed this 25 years on and for this uh honorable president released the stam sorry so CGTMS operates through me member lending uh institutions which are bank are banks and other such institutions. So these banks could also be approached and they they would provide uh support in this background. The condition is that you should be

14:42 udyam registered or you should be having udy assist uh platform preferably udy. Okay. Okay. So you know besides the schemes and initiatives there are certain challenges which MSME still face. Uh so Mr. Sele you know one of the biggest challenges MSMES face is access to timely credit and even when loans are secured delayed payments remain a persistent issue. Uh so to tackle this the ministry of MSME uh she also mentioned ma'am that has launched the online dispute resolution portal aimed at helping MSME resolve payment disputes quickly and affordably. So how effective do you think this initiative will be in addressing the issue of delayed payments? Uh yep I think you have very correctly

15:27 identified finance and uh timely access to finance and funds as a major challenge still for MSMES. Number of steps have been taken. Uh Madame Rrookmani mentioned CGTMSSE as a form of being able to finance the working capital without wanting collateral. Up to 80% to 85% of the uh loan is guaranteed by the government. In certain numbers put out by development commissioner today he also mentioned that the default rate or what is called NPA of MSMES are only 3 and a half% declining from about 11 or 12% 5 to 6 years ago. So MSMES today represent a very lowrisk lending channel for banks. On the other side, we

16:13 have things like once you get your UDAM registration, there are schemes which were launched three or four years ago like by the honorable prime minister called loan within 59 minutes. Now the at that point in time he emphasized that he said 59 minutes not 1 hour because he didn't want hours to be the unit in which it was counted. I'm happy to say that current feedback we get is that there are number of platforms which will sanction your loan within 15 minutes and the loan will be dispersed within 2 weeks and the consortium of banks and the platforms on which people with UDAM registration can apply. Put in your PAN number if you've got GST registration put in your GST data. put in your bank data and combining your income tax

17:01 earnings data and your turnover as evidenced by GST it becomes very easy for any financial to decide whether to finance you or not and as I mentioned the risk has gone down tremendously on the other hand there are other things which Kandwal Sab is also well aware of last year a big debate on 45day payment terms uh and and the finance minister put in a clause in the budget that if you If on the 31st of March you have not paid an MSME then that amount would be disallowed from your expense statement in your income tax and you would end up paying tax on it which could be 20 to 30%. Now I'm happy to say that our feedback and our own experience is that in the last year on 31st March there

17:47 were very very few defaulters and a lot of MSMES with delayed payments got their payments released because of the scheme. Another very useful scheme has been treads. Uh treads is something where if the buyer does not have his own direct financing, he can discount the bill. Now discounting of bills is always in excise but is always done with recourse. Okay. Treads is platform without recourse. The the buyer the seller and buyer can agree to be paid through treads. The bill is put up on the trades platform and any financial can decide that I'm willing to pick up this bill and I will pay the MSME within 45 days and I will get my payment from the buyer in 60 days or 90 days or whatever terms he has agreed and the cost of this goes to the buyer. The

18:34 other side is that buyers being larger organizations is easier for the financial to judge the risk than to judge the risk for small and micro enterprises which are using this platform. So these are kind of initiatives which are really helping the MSMES to meet their financial needs. Mr. Kandelwal you know India has set ambitious trillion dollar exports goal but with global trade becoming increasingly complex and competitive this doesn't look so easy. So in your view how can India strengthen its export capabilities and adapt to the evolving global trade landscape? Well, uh uh we have done it. If there is a will, there is a way, right? And uh and and I will give you the example of

19:21 toy industry. Okay. 5 years back the entire toy industry was heavily dependent upon uh the China and all that. So after Galwan there was a initiative led by CIT uh to boycott Chinese goods and later on the government of India supported the toy industry and today I can legitimately claim that 98% of the toys those who those which are sold in the country are of origin of India only and we are exporting a lot. So toy is one example. Likewise, likewise there are many commodities where India has become self-sufficient.

20:09 Not only self-sufficient, we are meeting our domestic requirement as well as the global requirements also. So the so in nutshell if I if I summarize the policies of the government have been made in a way to provide not only ease of doing business but even availability of finance technology skill development and whatn not. So that is why the MSMES are becoming dependent uh day by day and they are growing deeps and bounds. You know where there is a will there is a way. Uh Mr. Seel, you know, we often hear terms like industry 4.0 referring to the fourth industrial revolution powered by automation, AI and digital innovation

20:55 and technology is clearly reshaping the way businesses operate today. So in this context, what kind of modern technological support such as digital tools or training infrastructure is the government providing to help MSMES stay competitive and future ready according to you? Well, I'd like to share Namita that very recently about two months ago. Okay. CN and Niti Aayog have joined hands to form some uh program called DX Edge which is led by Madame the Dyani Gosh who is the ex NAS NASCOM head and the objective of that is exactly what you said to push industry 4.0 zero concept to as many of the MSMES and particularly in tier 2 and

21:43 tier three cities so that they automate the processes. We do have an advantage of lower labor costs compared to many other countries including our northern neighbor but the lower productivity offsets the lower labor cost to a very large extent. Now as we enter into global markets there are two things we must be prepared for larger volumes. We are not only serving the local area and a few towns around us. We're serving a global market. So we must be able to cope with the demand and the volumes which they require. But the other side another benefit of industry 4.0 is that by automating the processes and getting all the data out of it, you control the process so that you can have better quality. Now the better quality is reflected both in the product and the

22:30 service which you can give which international buyers expect. They do not expect our Indian attitude of saying that yes it'll be done and have a committed date which is never met. A commitment is a commitment in international work and we must have credibility for that and industry 4.0 inputs coming to the management of any enterprise enables it to make much more confident and reliable commitments to their buyers and we're sure that this will really help. So this program is on and we expect that in the next 3 years which is the projected life of this at present a lot of MSMES will come up with um with automation both for data collection and process control and that will show in the productivity in the better product

23:16 quality and in more business opportunities for MSNmes. Okay. Okay. Uh Miss Atri you know in 2024 India strengthened its global outreach by signingus with countries like Japan, Taiwan, the US, Egypt and Tajakistan to support MSME development, training and technology exchange. How do such international partnerships enhance competitiveness and innovation capacity of Indian MSMES? Ma'am say uh uh like the more uh more of the word you see the more of understanding you get uh these international collaboration always uh provide enriching uh experiences to the MSMES and then it has a you know catalytic effect. So once they go there and uh see

24:04 see the innovations and they they are encouraged to uh somehow follow the same practices and uh do it uh in their manufacturing processes and other processes. So this definitely uh adds to it. I would like to point out that um for this international uh exposures the ministry of MSME also has a scheme called IC scheme uh international cooperation where lot of support is provided to MSMES to participate in such international trades and events also that is like another part uh wherein u some sort of opportunities made available to MSMES wherein they can go and participate and and and see such uh learning. Okay, before we wrap up, I'd like to hear closing thoughts from both

24:51 my guests. Mr. Seagel, what in your view is the way forward to strengthen this vital sector for a sustainable and inclusive future? Well, I think we've touched on uh the finance part which is one thing holding us back. The other part has been touched upon by Rrookman G in her comment on ease of doing business. Right. I think there are a lot of requirements for compliance and reporting which hold back MSMES from enrolling. I think the fact that so many more MSMES have come forward to enroll on the Odium platform is evidence that they are no longer scared to start being part of the formal sector and by being part of the formal sector only does will it become possible

25:36 for the government to provide sustainance and aid to them in the form in which it is needed by having the necessary data to make those kind of decisions. On the other hand, the uh MSMES also by becoming part of the formal sector do away with their fear of what is happening on the internet. I sincerely believe that the level of comfort of most people in India is far higher than is imagined or said by many policy makers. The way people happily use their mobile phones for transactions, for sending money home, for buying goods, whether on Amazon or anything, it's really incredible. small shopkeepers will use PTM and you know equivalent uh UPI payment forms. So all this means

26:22 that we have now crossed a threshold of being worried about adopting good business systems which can increase efficiency and I think that e that comfort level is what we need to leverage to make people realize that the potential is far more than what we have uncovered and hopefully in the years to come more familiarity with AI e-arketing platforms payment platforms will help the MSMES to reach out to much larger than the immediate geographical areas which so far constrain them. I think that is what we'll see multiple times multiplier for MSME levels business in India. So as we celebrate MSME day ma'am what would be your message to the MSME community across the country?

27:09 uh I would like to wish them well and I would like to say that uh this is the time when there is so much collaboration between the ministries and uh there is an attempt to find a common platform. there is stakeholder consultation wherein we seek the uh opinion of uh the MSMES and try to uh understand it in a better way uh and try to include them and and there is also a convergence within the ministry wherein uh such type of uh initiatives are uh tried uh to to bring uh together. So uh uh I'm very sure with the such type of initiatives and with the active support of MSME sector in India uh we would be able to reach uh we would be able to become a developed country by 2047. Definitely.

27:54 And uh you know as Prime Minister Modi says MSMES are a transformative force in India's economic journey. They power growth, create jobs, spark innovation, and uplift local communities. With the right policies, better access to technology, and wider markets, MSMES can drive a sustainable and inclusive future. MSME day is not just a celebration. It's a reminder to invest in and strengthen this crucial pillar of our economy. With that, it's a wrap on this edition of Perspective. A big thank you to our guests, Mr. Kandelwal, Mr. Seagel, Miss Artri for their valuable insights and to you our viewers, thank you for joining us. Stay tuned and keep watching Sunset TV. [Music]

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