| "The issues concerning micro-enterprises are quite distinct from those of small and medium enterprises. That is why special measures like easy access to finance, a separate Bill and a special package for these units are needed," said FOTSII President Joginder Kumar. |
| The representatives of the association also met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on his recent visit to Amritsar and apprised him of these issues. |
| Speaking to Business Standard, Joginder Kumar said the working group on the 11th five-year plan has been constituted and its meetings are being conducted. |
| "We apprehend that the focus of the government has shifted more towards small and medium enterprises. We feel that micro-enterprises need special attention," he added. |
| He said there was a need for a separate minister of the state for micro-enterprises and Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) should be renamed Micro Enterprises and Development Bank of India so that easy finance is available to units falling under this category. |
| Mentioning the third census of small-scale industries conducted by the Central government, Kumar said it revealed that over 99 per cent of manufacturing units were tiny and were called micro-enterprises. |
| "Though the upper ceiling of the investment in plant and machinery for these units is Rs 25 lakh, over 98 per cent of these have investments less than Rs 2 lakh. Their contribution towards employment, on the other hand, is over 28 million and they account for nearly 40 per cent of the industrial production. However, most of these units are non-viable because of pricing and design factors," he said. |
| Industry said inadequate, delayed and costly credit, absence of proper marketing facilities, high tax rates, inadequate facilities for skilled development and need for technological upgrading, design development and product innovation facilities were factors which were making the units uncompetitive. |
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