Out of the total 41.83 million establishments in the country, 37.63 million (around 90 per cent) do not have access to any sort of credit. (The Central Statistical Organisation (CSO) defines establishment as an enterprise predominantly carrying out a single economic activity.) This startling figure is reported in the latest Economic Census 2005 released by the CSO. The report further points out that only 3.37 per cent (1.41 million) establishments receive assistance from financial institutions, while 1.49 per cent (0.62 million) establishments resort to borrowing from money lenders. The findings of the report only re-emphasise the need for the urgency with which the government should work towards greater financial inclusion. With about 52 million people employed by 25.5 million establishments in rural areas, any government programme to bring about a realistic change in rural India cannot ignore such cash-starved enterprises. Most of these establishments belong to the unorganised sector and often lose out in the race for a share in the increasingly-competitive market. Such establishments have long been driven by the sheer entrepreneurship abilities of the people at the 'bottom of the pyramid'. |
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