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President's Message
The Union Budget 2021-22 presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is growth oriented and ambitious. It has taken a big bet on investment in infrastructure and housing for fuelling growth. Yet, the FM has not imposed new taxes. India has enough room for borrowing as its debt to GDP ratio remains the lowest among its peers. It also boldly lays a roadmap for monetisation of assets old and new and raising funds through privatization. The Budget addressed to some extent the pain points of MSMEs especially by lowering the Customs duties on major key raw materials to bring down the prices. (The accompanying article on 10 key takeaways from Budget for MSMEs is a must-read). I call upon my colleagues of MSME associations to bring forth any provision which has been found detrimental to MSMEs. FISME intends to organize a detailed review of Budget in few days and meet senior officials to follow up on a few Budget proposals. Your opinion and comments are welcome.
"
To strengthen domestic manufacturing in select product categories and contain imports, FISME organized stakeholder consultation for the sports shoe cluster in Bahadurgarh (Haryana). Focusing on 'Atmanirbhar Bharat', FISME has initiated a program with SIDBI and Centre for WTO Studies (IIFT, New Delhi) for ‘Creating a Roadmap for Substituting Chinese Imports by Building Manufacturing Capability in 15 Identified MSME Clusters’. Sports shoes are a chosen product category for the study and intervention. The study's overall objective is to identify what would it take to manufacture sports shoes in India and out-compete Chinese imports. Following the study, SIDBI along with FISME and other institutions will endeavour to provide the financial, technical and marketing support needed by the cluster.
To strengthen domestic manufacturing in select product categories and contain imports, FISME organized stakeholder consultation for Sports shoes closter in Bahdaurgarh (Haryana). Focusing on 'Atmanirbhar Bharat', FISME has initiated a program with SIDBI and Centre for WTO Studies (IIFT, New Delhi) for ‘Creating a Roadmap for Substituting Chinese Imports by Building Manufacturing Capability in 15 Identified MSME Clusters’. Sposrts Shoes are a chosen product category for the study and intervention. The study's overall objective is to identify what would it take to manufacture blankets in India and out-compete Chinese imports. Following the study, SIDBI along with FSME and other institutions will endeavour to provide the financial, technical and marketing support needed by the cluster.
The Budget signals a massive investment in infrastructure (highways, ports, waterways, power etc) and push for low cost housing. It opens up huge demand not only for the primary producers but MSME products as well. (There are 60 MSME product categories directly linked to Housing alone). The near double increase in the allocation to the Ministry of MSME is laudable. However, the Lion’s share is likely to be taken away for the corpus of the credit guarantee company, backstopping the ECLGS. In that case, allocation for the existing successful schemes...
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has provided Rs 15,700 crore for the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) sector in the Union Budget 2021-22.
"We have taken a number of steps to support the MSME sector in this budget. I have provided Rs 15,700 crore more than double the previous year," said Sitharaman while presenting the Union Budget in the Parliament on Monday. The Government also proposes to reduce margin money requirements from 25 per cent to 15 per cent for startups.
The Economic Survey 2020-21 which was presented in the Parliament today by the Union Minister for Finance & Corporate Affairs, Nirmala Sitharaman, predicts a V-shaped recovery in economy.
Based on key indicators such as Services Purchasing Managers’ Index, Air passenger traffic, rail freight traffic, port traffic, foreign tourist arrivals and foreign exchange, the Survey observes that contraction due to Covid has bottomed out.
Ministry of Commerce & Industry has informed that total Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) inflow was recorded at US$ 58.37 billion during April to November, 2020.
Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) is a major driver of economic growth and an important source of non-debt finance for the economic development of India. It has been the endeavor of the Government to put in place an enabling and investor friendly FDI policy.
The Clothing Manufacturers Association of India (CMAI) the Apex Association of the Apparel Industry of the country has welcomed the Union Budget presented on Monday in the parliament by the Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.
Rajesh Masand, President, CMAI said that the announcement on the 7 Mega Textiles Parks was the highlight of the Budget directly impacting the Textile Industry. ''This is in line with the Government’s intention to encourage Mega Projects and increase the scale of operations in the Textile Industry. This has to be applauded. A particular positive aspect of this scheme is the incorporation of Plug and Play Model which will enable the Members of such Parks to avoid huge Capital expenditure outlays,'' he added.
Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) has signed an agreement with Ladakh UT to accelerate its development through S&T interventions.
The MoU was signed by Dr. D. Srinivas Reddy, Director, CSIR-IIIM on behalf of CSIR and Rigzin Samplel (IAS) Commissioner Secretary Agriculture and Horticulture from Ladakh UT.
The purpose is to establish knowledge partnership between the Ladakh UT and CSIR, aimed at development in the areas such as bio resource utilization endemic to Ladakh, introduction of cash crops in the region and exploration of natural resources.
Government has approved applications under Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme for promotion of domestic manufacturing of critical Key Starting Materials (KSMs)/Drug Intermediates and Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs) in the country. The companies are M/s Aurobindo Pharma Limited, (through Lyfius Pharma Pvt. Ltd.), M/s Karnataka Antibiotics & Pharmaceuticals Ltd., M/s Aurobindo Pharma Limited (through LyfiusPharmaPvt. Ltd.), M/s Aurobindo Pharma Limited (through Qule Pharma Pvt. Ltd.) and M/s Kinvan Pvt. Ltd.
With an aim to support to Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) with speedy and easy access to funds, YES BANK has rolled out ‘YES MSME’, whereby the bank will support MSMEs through solutions across lending, deposits, insurance, customised and segmented digital solutions for retail, manufacturing, wholesale, trade and service providers.
This also includes special current account offerings for the self-employed segment, the private sector bank said in a statement on Monday.
With a bigger objective of taking local food products with specific brands to the global market, the Odisha Government is giving a major boost to large number of micro unorganized food processing units within the state for development under the PM Formalization for Micro Food Processing Enterprises (PMFME) scheme.
Addressing a webinar titled ‘Investment Opportunities in Food Processing Sector in Odisha’ jointly organized by the Government of Odisha and FICCI on January 29th, Satyabrata Sahu Principal Secretary of MSME Department, Government of Odisha said, “Under the PMFME’s ‘One District One Product’ (ODOP) scheme, the state government has identified 30 different products for 30 districts.
The Karnataka government has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with global e-commerce giant Amazon India to help drive e-commerce exports from the state.
As part of the MoU, signed on Thursday, Amazon is expected to train and onboard MSMEs from the state on Amazon Global Selling and also enable them to sell their unique Made in India products globally to millions of Amazon’s global customers. “Karnataka has a vibrant agro, textile and garment, biotech, and toys/handicraft sectors which are held together by lakhs of MSMEs.
In a bid to strengthen manufacturing Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) in the state, the Gujarat government has announced eight new industrial estates to be set up in eight districts under Gujarat Industrial Development Corporation (GIDC).
The districts include Banaskantha, Jamnagar, Morbi, Gandhinagar, Patan, Rajkot, Anand and Mahisagar. The industries that will get a push include marble cutting and polishing industry, brass parts industry, Morbi ceramic, clock and toys industry, food and agro-processing industry, auto ancillary industry, medical devices industry and the engineering industries.
The Uttar Pradesh (UP) Government has helped more than 49 lakh Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) units get finance of over Rs 1,84,000 crore, said a senior official.
“With investment to the tune of Rs 1,84,000 crore coming into the MSME sector, we are ready for a big take off,” said Additional Chief Secretary, MSME, Navneet Sehgal during the online ‘MSME conclave’ organised by Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) here on Thursday.
Textiles Committee, Ministry of Textiles, Government of India signed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with M/s. Nissenken Quality Evaluation Centre Japan, through video conferencing on Wednesday.
The Union Cabinet chaired by Hon’ble Prime Minister in its meeting held on 2nd September, 2020 had given the approval for signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the two organisations. The signing ceremony was Presided over by Hon’ble Minister of Textiles and Minister of Women and Child Development, Smriti Zubin Irani on the Indian side and by His Excellency Yasumasa Nagasaka, Hon’ble State Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry, Govt. of Japan from the Japanese side.
The Union Cabinet approved the signing of Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between India and Uzbekistan on Wednesday for cooperation in the field of Solar Energy.
The main area of work under is to identify research/demonstration/pilot projects between the National Institute of Solar Energy (NISE), Ministry of New & Renewable Energy, India and the International Solar Energy Institute (ISEI), Uzbekistan.
Companies have experienced unparalleled challenges this year. As a result, small businesses are learning to differently optimize their operations in the form of hiring, managing and training new employees. While many organizations have floundered, e-commerce companies continue to thrive. Thanks, in part, to their already heavy reliance on outside-the-office workers.
Fundraising During the Pandemic: Debunking Some Common Myths
Almost every individual alive on this earth is aware that the COVID-19 triggered pandemic led to the worst ever health and economic crisis in human history. The world had entered an unmapped terrain, and no one knew what to expect. People and organizations were playing on the backfoot. Consumption had slowed down, and the global equity markets nosedived in the first half of 2020 when the outbreak was at its peak.
Privacy will be the competitive advantage in 2021 and will be linked to identity solutions that embrace data minimization, put privacy above design and focus on non-personally identifiable information (not PII). 2021 will be the year of privacy laws, mainly in the United States, but in a globalized world no country is excluded, which will help the digital advertising industry build a more transparent and reliable ecosystem.
MSMEs in Jammu demand timely sanction of power connections
Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) have demanded timely sanction of power connections for the new industries.
In this regard, on Saturday, a meeting was held under the president ship of Lalit Mahajan, Chairman Federation of Industries, Jammu in presence of Tarun Singla senior vice president, Ajay Langer vice president, Viraaj Malhotra general secretary, Rajesh Jain secretary, Vivek Singhal Treasurer and other members of the Association to discuss the Land Allotment Policy, 2021-30.
This 17-yr-old entrepreneur’s startup is helping blue and grey-collar workers upskill and find employment
When the coronavirus-led lockdown first began, businesses were impacted overnight. This led to millions of job losses and pay cuts across sectors, affecting so many livelihoods directly and indirectly. Blue and grey-collar workers were massively affected, with many left with no option but to make the arduous journey back to their hometowns and look for other options. A report by Betterplace, a platform for blue-collar workforce management, estimated more than 10 lakh blue-collar jobs have been affected due to the ongoing pandemic.
This agritech startup aims to empower India’s 126M small farmers with technology and data
For Amith Agarwal, there was nothing new about starting an agritech business. Having founded StarAgri and StarAgri Finance, Amith already had tremendous experience in the field, working with small farmers and agri-communities across India. He and his team had realised that small farm owners generally faced challenges that are disproportionate to their size and resources.
National Statistical Office (NSO), Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation has released the First Revised Estimates of National Income, Consumption Expenditure, Saving and Capital Formation for the financial year 2019-20 along with Second Revised Estimates for the financial year 2018-1 9 and Third Revised Estimates for the financial year 2017-1 8 (with Base Year 2011-12)
FISME regularly receives monthly reports on the economies of various countries from their missions in India. These reports provide information on key economic parameters, trade related information and all news relevant for importers and exporters. In this edition you can take a look at reports on:
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The Union Budget 2021-22 presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is growth oriented and ambitious. It has taken a big bet on investment in infrastructure and housing for fuelling growth. Yet, the FM has not imposed new taxes. India has enough room for borrowing as its debt to GDP ratio remains the lowest among its peers. It also boldly lays a roadmap for monetisation of assets old and new and raising funds through privatization. The Budget addressed to some extent the pain points of MSMEs especially by lowering the Customs duties on major key raw materials to bring down the prices. (The accompanying article on 10 key takeaways from Budget for MSMEs is a must-read). I call upon my colleagues of MSME associations to bring forth any provision which has been found detrimental to MSMEs. FISME intends to organize a detailed review of Budget in few days and meet senior officials to follow up on a few Budget proposals. Your opinion and comments are welcome.
"
To strengthen domestic manufacturing in select product categories and contain imports, FISME organized stakeholder consultation for the sports shoe cluster in Bahadurgarh (Haryana). Focusing on 'Atmanirbhar Bharat', FISME has initiated a program with SIDBI and Centre for WTO Studies (IIFT, New Delhi) for ‘Creating a Roadmap for Substituting Chinese Imports by Building Manufacturing Capability in 15 Identified MSME Clusters’. Sports shoes are a chosen product category for the study and intervention. The study's overall objective is to identify what would it take to manufacture sports shoes in India and out-compete Chinese imports. Following the study, SIDBI along with FISME and other institutions will endeavour to provide the financial, technical and marketing support needed by the cluster.
To strengthen domestic manufacturing in select product categories and contain imports, FISME organized stakeholder consultation for Sports shoes closter in Bahdaurgarh (Haryana). Focusing on 'Atmanirbhar Bharat', FISME has initiated a program with SIDBI and Centre for WTO Studies (IIFT, New Delhi) for ‘Creating a Roadmap for Substituting Chinese Imports by Building Manufacturing Capability in 15 Identified MSME Clusters’. Sposrts Shoes are a chosen product category for the study and intervention. The study's overall objective is to identify what would it take to manufacture blankets in India and out-compete Chinese imports. Following the study, SIDBI along with FSME and other institutions will endeavour to provide the financial, technical and marketing support needed by the cluster.
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has provided Rs 15,700 crore for the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) sector in the Union Budget 2021-22.
"We have taken a number of steps to support the MSME sector in this budget. I have provided Rs 15,700 crore more than double the previous year," said Sitharaman while presenting the Union Budget in the Parliament on Monday. The Government also proposes to reduce margin money requirements from 25 per cent to 15 per cent for startups.
The Economic Survey 2020-21 which was presented in the Parliament today by the Union Minister for Finance & Corporate Affairs, Nirmala Sitharaman, predicts a V-shaped recovery in economy.
Based on key indicators such as Services Purchasing Managers’ Index, Air passenger traffic, rail freight traffic, port traffic, foreign tourist arrivals and foreign exchange, the Survey observes that contraction due to Covid has bottomed out.
Ministry of Commerce & Industry has informed that total Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) inflow was recorded at US$ 58.37 billion during April to November, 2020.
Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) is a major driver of economic growth and an important source of non-debt finance for the economic development of India. It has been the endeavor of the Government to put in place an enabling and investor friendly FDI policy.
The Clothing Manufacturers Association of India (CMAI) the Apex Association of the Apparel Industry of the country has welcomed the Union Budget presented on Monday in the parliament by the Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.
Rajesh Masand, President, CMAI said that the announcement on the 7 Mega Textiles Parks was the highlight of the Budget directly impacting the Textile Industry. ''This is in line with the Government’s intention to encourage Mega Projects and increase the scale of operations in the Textile Industry. This has to be applauded. A particular positive aspect of this scheme is the incorporation of Plug and Play Model which will enable the Members of such Parks to avoid huge Capital expenditure outlays,'' he added.
Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) has signed an agreement with Ladakh UT to accelerate its development through S&T interventions.
The MoU was signed by Dr. D. Srinivas Reddy, Director, CSIR-IIIM on behalf of CSIR and Rigzin Samplel (IAS) Commissioner Secretary Agriculture and Horticulture from Ladakh UT.
The purpose is to establish knowledge partnership between the Ladakh UT and CSIR, aimed at development in the areas such as bio resource utilization endemic to Ladakh, introduction of cash crops in the region and exploration of natural resources.
Government has approved applications under Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme for promotion of domestic manufacturing of critical Key Starting Materials (KSMs)/Drug Intermediates and Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs) in the country. The companies are M/s Aurobindo Pharma Limited, (through Lyfius Pharma Pvt. Ltd.), M/s Karnataka Antibiotics & Pharmaceuticals Ltd., M/s Aurobindo Pharma Limited (through LyfiusPharmaPvt. Ltd.), M/s Aurobindo Pharma Limited (through Qule Pharma Pvt. Ltd.) and M/s Kinvan Pvt. Ltd.
With an aim to support to Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) with speedy and easy access to funds, YES BANK has rolled out ‘YES MSME’, whereby the bank will support MSMEs through solutions across lending, deposits, insurance, customised and segmented digital solutions for retail, manufacturing, wholesale, trade and service providers.
This also includes special current account offerings for the self-employed segment, the private sector bank said in a statement on Monday.
With a bigger objective of taking local food products with specific brands to the global market, the Odisha Government is giving a major boost to large number of micro unorganized food processing units within the state for development under the PM Formalization for Micro Food Processing Enterprises (PMFME) scheme.
Addressing a webinar titled ‘Investment Opportunities in Food Processing Sector in Odisha’ jointly organized by the Government of Odisha and FICCI on January 29th, Satyabrata Sahu Principal Secretary of MSME Department, Government of Odisha said, “Under the PMFME’s ‘One District One Product’ (ODOP) scheme, the state government has identified 30 different products for 30 districts.
The Karnataka government has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with global e-commerce giant Amazon India to help drive e-commerce exports from the state.
As part of the MoU, signed on Thursday, Amazon is expected to train and onboard MSMEs from the state on Amazon Global Selling and also enable them to sell their unique Made in India products globally to millions of Amazon’s global customers. “Karnataka has a vibrant agro, textile and garment, biotech, and toys/handicraft sectors which are held together by lakhs of MSMEs.
In a bid to strengthen manufacturing Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) in the state, the Gujarat government has announced eight new industrial estates to be set up in eight districts under Gujarat Industrial Development Corporation (GIDC).
The districts include Banaskantha, Jamnagar, Morbi, Gandhinagar, Patan, Rajkot, Anand and Mahisagar. The industries that will get a push include marble cutting and polishing industry, brass parts industry, Morbi ceramic, clock and toys industry, food and agro-processing industry, auto ancillary industry, medical devices industry and the engineering industries.
The Uttar Pradesh (UP) Government has helped more than 49 lakh Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) units get finance of over Rs 1,84,000 crore, said a senior official.
“With investment to the tune of Rs 1,84,000 crore coming into the MSME sector, we are ready for a big take off,” said Additional Chief Secretary, MSME, Navneet Sehgal during the online ‘MSME conclave’ organised by Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) here on Thursday.
Textiles Committee, Ministry of Textiles, Government of India signed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with M/s. Nissenken Quality Evaluation Centre Japan, through video conferencing on Wednesday.
The Union Cabinet chaired by Hon’ble Prime Minister in its meeting held on 2nd September, 2020 had given the approval for signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the two organisations. The signing ceremony was Presided over by Hon’ble Minister of Textiles and Minister of Women and Child Development, Smriti Zubin Irani on the Indian side and by His Excellency Yasumasa Nagasaka, Hon’ble State Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry, Govt. of Japan from the Japanese side.
The Union Cabinet approved the signing of Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between India and Uzbekistan on Wednesday for cooperation in the field of Solar Energy.
The main area of work under is to identify research/demonstration/pilot projects between the National Institute of Solar Energy (NISE), Ministry of New & Renewable Energy, India and the International Solar Energy Institute (ISEI), Uzbekistan.
According to the FISME factor, 75% of MSMEs think that COVID vaccine will significantly help in economic recovery while 25% can’t say. 
Companies have experienced unparalleled challenges this year. As a result, small businesses are learning to differently optimize their operations in the form of hiring, managing and training new employees. While many organizations have floundered, e-commerce companies continue to thrive. Thanks, in part, to their already heavy reliance on outside-the-office workers.
Almost every individual alive on this earth is aware that the COVID-19 triggered pandemic led to the worst ever health and economic crisis in human history. The world had entered an unmapped terrain, and no one knew what to expect. People and organizations were playing on the backfoot. Consumption had slowed down, and the global equity markets nosedived in the first half of 2020 when the outbreak was at its peak.
Privacy will be the competitive advantage in 2021 and will be linked to identity solutions that embrace data minimization, put privacy above design and focus on non-personally identifiable information (not PII). 2021 will be the year of privacy laws, mainly in the United States, but in a globalized world no country is excluded, which will help the digital advertising industry build a more transparent and reliable ecosystem.
Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) have demanded timely sanction of power connections for the new industries.
In this regard, on Saturday, a meeting was held under the president ship of Lalit Mahajan, Chairman Federation of Industries, Jammu in presence of Tarun Singla senior vice president, Ajay Langer vice president, Viraaj Malhotra general secretary, Rajesh Jain secretary, Vivek Singhal Treasurer and other members of the Association to discuss the Land Allotment Policy, 2021-30.
When the coronavirus-led lockdown first began, businesses were impacted overnight. This led to millions of job losses and pay cuts across sectors, affecting so many livelihoods directly and indirectly. Blue and grey-collar workers were massively affected, with many left with no option but to make the arduous journey back to their hometowns and look for other options. A report by Betterplace, a platform for blue-collar workforce management, estimated more than 10 lakh blue-collar jobs have been affected due to the ongoing pandemic.
For Amith Agarwal, there was nothing new about starting an agritech business. Having founded StarAgri and StarAgri Finance, Amith already had tremendous experience in the field, working with small farmers and agri-communities across India. He and his team had realised that small farm owners generally faced challenges that are disproportionate to their size and resources.
“ Be the servant while leading. Be unselfish. Have infinite patience, and success is yours.
”
