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President Message
A few weeks ago Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman ji has recently released the ‘Business Reforms Action Plan (BRAP), 2020 and presented assessment report of states and union territories. Not many associations have took notice of the development. The BRAP focuses on over 350 reform points and guides states to carry them out. It does categorize states under four categories Top achievers, Achievers, Aspires, and Emerging business ecosystems. This is not very important. What is important is the reforms agenda which the states are encouraged to follow. Associations need to study the State Reforms Action Plan 2020-21: Implementation Guide for States/UTs. (link: http://niveshmitra.up.nic.in/Documents/DIPP_2020.pdf ). Many of the issues that associations raise are already listed there so it becomes easy to persuade the government to take action to improve national ranking. Secondly, for future reforms, getting them enlisted in the reforms agenda will make it more acceptable for carrying out the required change.
"
A delegation led by President Prashant Patel of Federation of Indian Micro and Small & Medium Enterprises (FISME) met Anandiben Patel, Governor of Uttar Pradesh at Raj Bhawan in Lucknow on 11th July 2022.
The delegation highlighted the need for upgradation of industrial infrastructure especially the industrial estates and industrial areas in Uttar Pradesh.
FISME requested Governor to help in sharing the best practices in upgrading industrial estates. Several such successful models were executed during her tenure as Minister and Chief Minister in Gujarat.
A delegation from FISME met Mr. Anil Kumar Sharma, Executive Director, RBI and Mr. Sunil Mehta, Executive Director, Indian Bank Association in Mumbai and raised issues related to foreclosure charges imposed by bank in contravention to the Code of Commitment. Also raised with RBI were the issues such as uselessness of BLR rating and Ombudsman scheme. FISME has submitted close to 100 cases related to these matters. The delegation was led by Shri Neeraj Kedia, Chairman Banking and Finance Committee, Shri Anil Bhardwaj, Secretary General and Shri Rajesh Dubey Advisory Finance.
Many small business owners face the same challenges to growth, yet they think they're alone. Here are four issues that seem to plague them the most and advice on how to overcome them as well. I recently spoke with a small business owner who has been fairly successful and has overcome so much to get where she is. She owns a cleaning company and has been in business for over 25 years. Yet, the past four or five years have been an increasingly challenging time to generate new business.
The Business Reforms Action Plan (BRAP) report released a few days ago by the Centre, is a useful exercise for many reasons. This time, it is a report card on the implementation of 301 reform points in 15 regulatory areas spelt out in 2020. BRAP is a more decentralised avatar of the World Bank’s now-discontinued Ease of Doing Business report — the latter would do its country rankings on the basis of surveys in a clutch of major cities in countries...
The central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) on Thursday notified that all the changes in the GST rates will come into effect from July 18.
As per the recommendation of the 47th GST Council meeting that was held in Chandigarh, the Goods and Services Tax (GST) will be hiked for numerous items. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had earlier announced the rate changes of items such as knives with cutting blades, spoons, forks, ladles, skimmers, cake servers, fish knives, butter-knives, sugar tongs and similar kitchen or tableware, bicycle pumps, parts of air or vacuum pumps and compressors of bicycle pumps, among others.
The government has decided to extend the Rebate of State and Central Taxes and Levies (RoSCTL) Scheme for exports of apparel/garments and made-ups with same rates till March 31, 2024, said textiles ministry in a statement.
The centre has extended the scheme with the objective to boost exports and enhance job creation in the textile sector. “RoSCTL is a forward-looking and growth-oriented scheme which has provided a stable and predictable policy regime, helping boost exports and employment. The scheme helped improve cost efficiency and the export competitiveness in the international market”, Apparel Export Promotion Council Chairman, Naren Goenka said.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Monday released a framework for international trade settlement in Indian Rupees (INR).
The move aims to promote growth of global trade with emphasis on exports from India and to support the increasing interest of global trading community in INR.
All exports and imports under the new arrangement can be denominated and invoiced in Indian rupee, the exchange rate between currencies under the new arrangement may be market-determined.
The initial investments of USD 1.33 billion proposed under the I2U2 partnership will give Indian farmers guaranteed access to West Asian markets and set up a clean energy project in Gujarat to make India the supply chain hub of renewable energy.
The first I2U2 Summit which stands for India, Israel, the UAE, and the US was held on Thursday.
Leaders of the four countries PM Narendra Modi along with US President Joe Biden, UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and Israel PM Yair Lapid identified half a dozen projects during the virtual summit.
Bringing the limit down from Rs 20 crore the government is likely to make GST e-invoicing mandatory for companies with turnover of Rs 5 crore and above.
The changes are expected to be introduced in the current financial year, as per Business Standard.
Before applying it on entities with Rs 5 crore it will start with companies having turnover of Rs 10 crore to ensure easy compliance and for plugging revenue leakage.
The aim is to digitise higher volumes of transactions, greater transparency in sales reporting, improving compliance and minimising errors and mismatches.
The apprentices will now directly receive their stipend subsidy in their bank accounts through Direct Beneficiary Transfer (DBT) scheme under the National Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme (NAPS).
Last week the government announced that the NAPS will be part of DBT and the government will directly transfer 25% of the stipend payable up to Rs 1500/- per month to the bank accounts of apprentices. Lauding the initiative, Union Minister of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, and Education, Dharmendra Pradhan, said that apprenticeship is getting a big boost under Skill India.
The Karnataka Skill Development Corporation (KSDC) will launch the Karnataka Skill Connect Portal (KSCP) on Friday (July 15).
The digital platform aims to bring together academic institutions, various skilling agencies, potential workforce, and potential employers.
The KSCP platform’s approval was announced through a short video that was unveiled by the Chief Minister of Karnataka Basavraj Bommai.
Speaking on the occasion, CM Bommai said, “For us to be recognized on a global platform, we need to build a skilled workforce which can only be achieved if the youth of our state are provided with the right training and skillset.”
Odisha’s Assembly standing committee on MSMEs has suggested the state government to establish a mega toy park in Odisha.
This move aims to increase Odisha’s participation and contribution in the expansion of toy manufacturing in India.
According to the latest data, in the last three years there has been a 61 per cent rise in toy exports from India. BJP MLA Mohan Majhi headed the standing committee and the recommendation came in the wake of Central government approving eight toy manufacturing clusters in five states at a cost of Rs 2,300 crore last year. The panel highlighted the boost local MSME sector will receive owing to the huge opportunities in the toy industry.
Considering the ongoing stand-off with China and import restrictions on many items including toys from the neighbouring country provides a bigger opportunity for entrepreneurs of the State to invest in toy manufacturing which will generate employment for a large number of people, the committee has stated.
"This opportunity should be grabbed by the government as well as the MSMEs. In order to facilitate this, a mega toy park should be promoted which can be touted as a Toy Hub at the national level," its report said.
Gujarat Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI) has urged the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) to direct insurance firms to make immediate payment of 75 per cent of claim amount to help Gujarat based companies recover from the loss and damages caused due to heavy rainfall.
The industry body said that it must be considered only if the claim is found to be genuine and correct after completion of the survey.
“While the remaining 25 per cent amount can be disbursed after the documentation is over,” proposed the chamber.
GCCI wrote a letter to Chairman of IRDAI highlighting condition of the State owing to heavy rainfall and flood like situation in certain districts of South Gujarat.
To create employment opportunities for rural women, the Uttar Pradesh government is engaging women self-help groups for growing new varieties of sugarcane seedling in nurseries.
Seed cane nurseries in the state have so far helped in socio-economic upliftment of over 59,000 women associated with 3,004 women self-help groups. These women have produced over 24.41 crore seedlings through the single bud and bud chip techniques.
The state government, under the Deendayal Antyodaya National Rural Livelihood Mission, is emphasising on providing bank loans to women SHGs to encourage them to improve their living standards and become self-reliant.
With the implementation of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) in May India’s gold jewellery exports to UAE has shown a positive result.
According to the Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC), India’s exports of plain gold jewellery to UAE witnessed a growth of 72 per cent to Rs 1,048.40 crore in May 2022 and 68.65 per cent to Rs 1,451.58 crore in June 2022 as compared to the same month in 2021, respectively. Besides, total gem and jewellery exports to UAE from April to June witnessed a growth of 10.09 per cent to Rs 9,802.72 crore as compared to the same period last year.
The export council said that during the period of April to June 2022 apart from UAE demand for gems and jewellery also remained strong from key markets like the US, Hong Kong, Belgium, and Israel. Thanking the Ministry of Commerce & Industry for supporting the industry with a transformative policy, Colin Shah, Chairman of the council said, “Plain gold jewellery exports have been the immediate beneficiary of the India-UAE CEPA.”
He urge all exporters to maximise their returns and make optimum use of the benefits available through this pact.
For the month of June 2022, India’s overall gross exports of gems and jewellery witnessed a growth of 21.41 per cent to Rs 25,295.69 crore as compared to Rs 20,835.57 crore in June 2021.
How coaching can support leaders in managing the return to office
The corporate world has been abuzz recently with more organisations mandating that employees return to the office. While some have welcomed the move with open arms and excitement, many are resistant and do not see the real need behind this mandate.
Here are some financial tips for young entrepreneurs by Pavan Reddy Appakonda
Beginning a journey at a young age is never an easy task. Hurdles, barriers, troubles, and hardships all come together, except for those who are fortunate enough to have people come to their aid, handing them every possible solution on a silver platter.
As an entrepreneur, it's important to work on increasing your brand awareness if you want to succeed in today's highly competitive business environment. Brand awareness refers to how often your brand or product name comes up in conversations, and the more often this happens, the better your chances are of generating interest and sales.
Tamil Nadu SMEs in auto component manufacturing upset over GST disparities
The Auto-component manufacturers in the Hosur region of Tamil Nadu have urged the union government to address the disparities in the GST. The manufacturers of the region said that they’re levied 18-28 percent GST as automobiles come under luxury products which in return the small units cannot afford to pay.
Vocal for local ecommerce: This app is helping small businesses become virtual kiranas
Rewind the clock to 10 years ago and TV programming back then was very different. Outside of prime time, all channels were dominated by anchors screaming at the top of their lungs and jostling to sell products—from washing machines to diamonds.
Started up in pandemic, how this entrepreneur built multi-crore menswear brands
When his family wanted him to become a doctor, Sreejith, who grew up in Kollam, Kerala, took a course on fashion at the National Institute of Fashion Technology “accidentally,” and that’s how he was introduced to the industry.
The National Statistical Office (NSO), Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) has released the Quick Estimates of Index of Industrial Production and use based index for the month of May, 2022 (base 2011‐12=100).
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:
Write your comments on the FISME Factor. Share your views and suggestions on MSME issues. Win prize! The best mail will get a special book every fortnight.
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A few weeks ago Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman ji has recently released the ‘Business Reforms Action Plan (BRAP), 2020 and presented assessment report of states and union territories. Not many associations have took notice of the development. The BRAP focuses on over 350 reform points and guides states to carry them out. It does categorize states under four categories Top achievers, Achievers, Aspires, and Emerging business ecosystems. This is not very important. What is important is the reforms agenda which the states are encouraged to follow. Associations need to study the State Reforms Action Plan 2020-21: Implementation Guide for States/UTs. (link: http://niveshmitra.up.nic.in/Documents/DIPP_2020.pdf ). Many of the issues that associations raise are already listed there so it becomes easy to persuade the government to take action to improve national ranking. Secondly, for future reforms, getting them enlisted in the reforms agenda will make it more acceptable for carrying out the required change.
"
A delegation led by President Prashant Patel of Federation of Indian Micro and Small & Medium Enterprises (FISME) met Anandiben Patel, Governor of Uttar Pradesh at Raj Bhawan in Lucknow on 11th July 2022.
The delegation highlighted the need for upgradation of industrial infrastructure especially the industrial estates and industrial areas in Uttar Pradesh.
FISME requested Governor to help in sharing the best practices in upgrading industrial estates. Several such successful models were executed during her tenure as Minister and Chief Minister in Gujarat.
A delegation from FISME met Mr. Anil Kumar Sharma, Executive Director, RBI and Mr. Sunil Mehta, Executive Director, Indian Bank Association in Mumbai and raised issues related to foreclosure charges imposed by bank in contravention to the Code of Commitment. Also raised with RBI were the issues such as uselessness of BLR rating and Ombudsman scheme. FISME has submitted close to 100 cases related to these matters. The delegation was led by Shri Neeraj Kedia, Chairman Banking and Finance Committee, Shri Anil Bhardwaj, Secretary General and Shri Rajesh Dubey Advisory Finance.
The central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) on Thursday notified that all the changes in the GST rates will come into effect from July 18.
As per the recommendation of the 47th GST Council meeting that was held in Chandigarh, the Goods and Services Tax (GST) will be hiked for numerous items. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had earlier announced the rate changes of items such as knives with cutting blades, spoons, forks, ladles, skimmers, cake servers, fish knives, butter-knives, sugar tongs and similar kitchen or tableware, bicycle pumps, parts of air or vacuum pumps and compressors of bicycle pumps, among others.
The government has decided to extend the Rebate of State and Central Taxes and Levies (RoSCTL) Scheme for exports of apparel/garments and made-ups with same rates till March 31, 2024, said textiles ministry in a statement.
The centre has extended the scheme with the objective to boost exports and enhance job creation in the textile sector. “RoSCTL is a forward-looking and growth-oriented scheme which has provided a stable and predictable policy regime, helping boost exports and employment. The scheme helped improve cost efficiency and the export competitiveness in the international market”, Apparel Export Promotion Council Chairman, Naren Goenka said.
The initial investments of USD 1.33 billion proposed under the I2U2 partnership will give Indian farmers guaranteed access to West Asian markets and set up a clean energy project in Gujarat to make India the supply chain hub of renewable energy.
The first I2U2 Summit which stands for India, Israel, the UAE, and the US was held on Thursday.
Leaders of the four countries PM Narendra Modi along with US President Joe Biden, UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and Israel PM Yair Lapid identified half a dozen projects during the virtual summit.
Bringing the limit down from Rs 20 crore the government is likely to make GST e-invoicing mandatory for companies with turnover of Rs 5 crore and above.
The changes are expected to be introduced in the current financial year, as per Business Standard.
Before applying it on entities with Rs 5 crore it will start with companies having turnover of Rs 10 crore to ensure easy compliance and for plugging revenue leakage.
The aim is to digitise higher volumes of transactions, greater transparency in sales reporting, improving compliance and minimising errors and mismatches.
The apprentices will now directly receive their stipend subsidy in their bank accounts through Direct Beneficiary Transfer (DBT) scheme under the National Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme (NAPS).
Last week the government announced that the NAPS will be part of DBT and the government will directly transfer 25% of the stipend payable up to Rs 1500/- per month to the bank accounts of apprentices. Lauding the initiative, Union Minister of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, and Education, Dharmendra Pradhan, said that apprenticeship is getting a big boost under Skill India.
The Karnataka Skill Development Corporation (KSDC) will launch the Karnataka Skill Connect Portal (KSCP) on Friday (July 15).
The digital platform aims to bring together academic institutions, various skilling agencies, potential workforce, and potential employers.
The KSCP platform’s approval was announced through a short video that was unveiled by the Chief Minister of Karnataka Basavraj Bommai.
Speaking on the occasion, CM Bommai said, “For us to be recognized on a global platform, we need to build a skilled workforce which can only be achieved if the youth of our state are provided with the right training and skillset.”
Odisha’s Assembly standing committee on MSMEs has suggested the state government to establish a mega toy park in Odisha.
This move aims to increase Odisha’s participation and contribution in the expansion of toy manufacturing in India.
According to the latest data, in the last three years there has been a 61 per cent rise in toy exports from India. BJP MLA Mohan Majhi headed the standing committee and the recommendation came in the wake of Central government approving eight toy manufacturing clusters in five states at a cost of Rs 2,300 crore last year. The panel highlighted the boost local MSME sector will receive owing to the huge opportunities in the toy industry.
Considering the ongoing stand-off with China and import restrictions on many items including toys from the neighbouring country provides a bigger opportunity for entrepreneurs of the State to invest in toy manufacturing which will generate employment for a large number of people, the committee has stated.
"This opportunity should be grabbed by the government as well as the MSMEs. In order to facilitate this, a mega toy park should be promoted which can be touted as a Toy Hub at the national level," its report said.
Gujarat Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI) has urged the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) to direct insurance firms to make immediate payment of 75 per cent of claim amount to help Gujarat based companies recover from the loss and damages caused due to heavy rainfall.
The industry body said that it must be considered only if the claim is found to be genuine and correct after completion of the survey.
“While the remaining 25 per cent amount can be disbursed after the documentation is over,” proposed the chamber.
GCCI wrote a letter to Chairman of IRDAI highlighting condition of the State owing to heavy rainfall and flood like situation in certain districts of South Gujarat.
To create employment opportunities for rural women, the Uttar Pradesh government is engaging women self-help groups for growing new varieties of sugarcane seedling in nurseries.
Seed cane nurseries in the state have so far helped in socio-economic upliftment of over 59,000 women associated with 3,004 women self-help groups. These women have produced over 24.41 crore seedlings through the single bud and bud chip techniques.
The state government, under the Deendayal Antyodaya National Rural Livelihood Mission, is emphasising on providing bank loans to women SHGs to encourage them to improve their living standards and become self-reliant.
With the implementation of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) in May India’s gold jewellery exports to UAE has shown a positive result.
According to the Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC), India’s exports of plain gold jewellery to UAE witnessed a growth of 72 per cent to Rs 1,048.40 crore in May 2022 and 68.65 per cent to Rs 1,451.58 crore in June 2022 as compared to the same month in 2021, respectively. Besides, total gem and jewellery exports to UAE from April to June witnessed a growth of 10.09 per cent to Rs 9,802.72 crore as compared to the same period last year.
The export council said that during the period of April to June 2022 apart from UAE demand for gems and jewellery also remained strong from key markets like the US, Hong Kong, Belgium, and Israel. Thanking the Ministry of Commerce & Industry for supporting the industry with a transformative policy, Colin Shah, Chairman of the council said, “Plain gold jewellery exports have been the immediate beneficiary of the India-UAE CEPA.”
He urge all exporters to maximise their returns and make optimum use of the benefits available through this pact.
For the month of June 2022, India’s overall gross exports of gems and jewellery witnessed a growth of 21.41 per cent to Rs 25,295.69 crore as compared to Rs 20,835.57 crore in June 2021.
According to the FISME factor, 100% of MSMEs think that GST has impacted life of business for better. 
The corporate world has been abuzz recently with more organisations mandating that employees return to the office. While some have welcomed the move with open arms and excitement, many are resistant and do not see the real need behind this mandate.
Beginning a journey at a young age is never an easy task. Hurdles, barriers, troubles, and hardships all come together, except for those who are fortunate enough to have people come to their aid, handing them every possible solution on a silver platter.
As an entrepreneur, it's important to work on increasing your brand awareness if you want to succeed in today's highly competitive business environment. Brand awareness refers to how often your brand or product name comes up in conversations, and the more often this happens, the better your chances are of generating interest and sales.
The Auto-component manufacturers in the Hosur region of Tamil Nadu have urged the union government to address the disparities in the GST. The manufacturers of the region said that they’re levied 18-28 percent GST as automobiles come under luxury products which in return the small units cannot afford to pay.
Rewind the clock to 10 years ago and TV programming back then was very different. Outside of prime time, all channels were dominated by anchors screaming at the top of their lungs and jostling to sell products—from washing machines to diamonds. 
When his family wanted him to become a doctor, Sreejith, who grew up in Kollam, Kerala, took a course on fashion at the National Institute of Fashion Technology “accidentally,” and that’s how he was introduced to the industry.
“ The energy of the mind is the essence of life. ”
