The micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in India have generated more than 20.5 crore jobs in the last four years, the Centre informed on Monday.

In a reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha, Union Minister of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, Jitan Ram Manjhi, informed that Udyam Registration Portal was launched on July 1, 2020 and since then, the total employment reported by MSMEs on the Portal and Udyam Assist Platform is 20.51 crore (as on July 24, 2024).

Keeping this surge in employment in mind, the Union Budget 2024-25 has included several significant provisions for the sector, including a new credit guarantee scheme, offering collateral-free loans to the MSME units.

The Ministry of MSME has been implementing ‘Champions Scheme’ for promoting competitiveness among them by creating awareness about zero defect zero effect (ZED) practices and motivating and incentivising them for ZED certification, whereby MSMEs can reduce wastages substantially, increase productivity, enhance environmental consciousness, save energy, optimally use natural resources, expand their markets, etc.

The minister informed that the government is implementing different schemes and programmes like Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), Pt Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Grameen Kaushalya Yojana (DDU-GKY), Rural Self-Employment and Training Institute (RSETIs), Deen Dayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Urban Livelihood Mission (DAY-NULM), Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana (PMMY), etc. to generate employment including in the MSME sector.

The government has taken a number of initiatives to support the sector, like collateral-free loans up to a limit of Rs 5 crore with guarantee coverage up to 85 per cent for various categories of loan through Credit Guarantee Fund Trust for Micro and Small Enterprises (CGTMSE) under the Credit Guarantee Scheme.

Another initiative is a Rs 50,000 crore equity infusion through ‘Self Reliant India Fund’. This scheme has a provision for a corpus of Rs 10,000 crore from the government.

Among other initiatives are new revised criteria for classification of MSMEs with higher thresholds, no global tenders for procurement up to Rs 200 crore, non-tax benefits extended for three years in case of an upward change in status of MSMEs and Raising and Accelerating MSME Performance (RAMP) programme with an outlay of Rs 6,000 crore over five years.

The Centre has also called for integrating MSMEs with the Global Value Chains (GVCs).