VISAKHAPATNAM: Union Minister for MSME Kalraj Mishra has assured support to set up an incubation centre for women entrepreneurs in Andhra Pradesh.
Inaugurating Shakti, a women entrepreneurs’ meet here on Friday, he said the support would be extended under ASPIRE, a scheme for promotion of innovation, entrepreneurship, and agro industry.
The Minister said that the Union Government would extend support to MSME parks proposed to be set up by the Andhra Pradesh government in each of the 175 Assembly constituencies.
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The meeting was organised by the India SME Forum along with State Bank of India, and with the support of the A. P. Chambers of Commerce and Industry Federation.
Giving details of various initiatives taken by the Narendra Modi Government for promoting the MSMEs, Mr. Mishra said the corpus of Credit Guarantee Trust Fund for Micro and Small Enterprises was increased from ₹2,500 crore to ₹7,500 crore, and it would be fully funded by the government. The coverage of loans under credit guarantee was increased from ₹1 crore to ₹2 crore and made applicable to non-banking financial companies too.
Banks had been asked to raise the credit limit for small industry from 20% of the turnover to 25%, and working capital loans from 20% of the turnover to 30% for enterprises that transacted digitally.
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The Minister, however, was critical of banks for not financing small entrepreneurs and bringing loan under the NPA if an instalment was not paid in 90 days.
Citing the sanction of only seven units against the target of 870 under Stand Up India and only 7% SME target achieved in the neighbouring Vizianagaram district, Lok Sabha member K. Haribabu said that not getting loan and land were major problems for entrepreneurs. On the other hand, banks say that they were not finding proper entrepreneurs.
Director of Industries, Andhra Pradesh, Kartikeya Mishra, said some of the 175 MSME parks proposed, or parts in parks, would be earmarked for women. Dedicated women entrepreneur parks were running in Vijayawada and a few were taking shape in Nellore. It would be encouraged in North Andhra too, he added.
The MSME Development Policy 2015-20 of A.P. offered a number of incentives. The government would also come out with a policy for course correction to prevent stress in MSMEs and also nurse back those already stressed.
General Manager, SME, SBI, Mumbai, Uma Shanmukhi Sistla, said the bank had financed 2,000 women entrepreneurs under Start Up India.
She urged the Minister to simplify the documentation process across the country for Mudra loans and bring down the charges to ₹100.
Director-General of the forum Sushma Morthania, Chairman of the forum Prahlad Kakkar, honorary president Vinod Kumar, General Manager, SBI, Hyderabad, Ravindra Pandey, and president-elect of the Chambers G. Sambasiva Rao spoke.