Finance Minister Sitharaman nudges India Inc to clear unpaid dues of MSMEs

Nirmala Sitharaman said it is encouraging that larger companies are including amounts owed to MSMEs in annual statements

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday asked big corporate houses to clear dues to micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and said smaller businesses will need equal support from both the government and larger established firms.

“Support to the MSMEs is not just what the government can give. It is certainly largely dependent on that. There are pending payments from central and state governments and central and state-owned entities. But I was surprised to find that considerable due pending payments were also from the big industries,” the finance minister said at the Hero Mindmine Summit.

Sitharaman said while she