SME bill to help up competitiveness

The Small and Medium Enterprises Bill 2005 which provides for facilitating the promotion, development and increasing the competitiveness of small and medium enterprises is key to development of SMEs. There has been a paradigm shift in focus today, from small scale industries (SSI) to small and medium enterprises (SMEs).

Speaking on the seminar 'Enabling SMEs', Anant R Koppar, president, BCIC said that so far the government policy as well as credit policy concentrated on manufacturing units in the small scale sector.

The lowering of trade barriers across the globe has increased the minimum viable scale of enterprises and the size of the unit and the technology employed in firms need to be globally competitive.

He added that there is a need to redefine the small scale sector. There is a need to include the medium enterprises in a composite sector of SMEs.

Speaking on occasion Devaki Muthukrishnan, regional director, RBI said RBI will advise the banks to frame a policy to enhance the flow of credit to SMEs, within the overall framework of credit policy.