Credit and Finance for MSMEs: MSME sector in Kerala has seen an investment of over Rs 4,500 crore and has created more than 1.80 lakh jobs in the state under the current government, Kerala’s Industries Minister E.P Jayarajan said on Wednesday. Ever since the new government led by Pinarayi Vijayan came into power in 2016, 52,137 MSMEs of various scale and size have been set-up, Jayarajan said as reported by IANS. “In Kerala, the MSME sector is looking bright and we are looking forward for more and more investments. We are expecting non-resident Keralites, who are potential investors, to set up new units,” said Jayarajan.
Kerala has the 12th highest number of MSMEs — around 23.79 lakh MSMEs out of which 23.58 lakh are micro-enterprises, according to the MSME Ministry’s Annual report 2019. The state MSMEs employed approximately 44.64 lakh people according to the report citing 73rd round of the National Sample Survey.
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The comments come nearly a month after the Kerala government had passed the Kerala MSME Facilitation Bill 2019 to boost investment in the sector and help set-up new enterprises. The bill approved launching a business with investment not exceeding Rs 10 crore that would not require any prior licence from the state government. The individual will have to submit an affidavit to the Industries Department through Single Window clearance system. However, after three years, the company will have to get all the licenses necessary to run a business.
The move aimed at improving ease of doing business in the state will help entrepreneurs kick start their ventures and take time to be compliant instead of juggling with both in the initial days. “They need not wait for getting the licenses and clearances and this they need to get it in six months after the three year period ends. This is done to see that investors do not waste time waiting for all clearances to come to start,” added Jayarajan. However, units falling under the red category of the State Pollution Board won’t be able to apply for the benefit, the minister said.
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Source: Financial Express
