Mumbai, Sept 11 (KNN) Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI), the principal financial institution engaged in the promotion, financing and development of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME), has entered a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Rajasthan government to develop the MSME ecosystem in the State.

The MoU was signed by Archana Singh, IAS, Commissioner Industries, Government of Rajasthan and Balbir Singh, General Manager, SIDBI in the presence of Parsadi Lal Meena, Cabinet Minister for Industries and State Enterprises, Government of Rajasthan andShri Naresh Pal Gangwar, IAS, Principal Secretary, Industries and MSME, Government of Rajasthan.

Under the agreement, a Project Management Unit (PMU) will be deployed by SIDBI with the Government of Rajasthan. The role of the PMU will be to design schemes/programs in the areas of equity support, interest subvention, resolution of stressed MSMEs, supporting MSME entrepreneurs and facilitate other need-based intervention based on evaluation of the existing status of MSMEs.

On this occasion, V Satya Venkata Rao, Deputy Managing Director of SIDBI said, “We have already initiated the process of collaborating with state governments for more focused engagement in various forms for the upliftment of MSMEs. We have appointed an expert agency for setting up PMUs in 11 states namely, Assam, New Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu in the pilot phase.

With this SIDBI intends to cooperate closely with state governments to strengthen the enterprise ecosystem with thrust on Micro and Small enterprises. Imbibing good practices, rejuvenating existing programs and policies, and enable more responsive ecosystem shall be the target of our joining of hands.”

“We are set up to empower MSMEs in the State of Rajasthan. The PMU will study existing framework of schemes, interventions, initiatives, projects etc. which are currently available for the benefit of / targeted towards MSMEs in the State and shall suggest modifications, if any, with the objective of enhancing efficacy and removal of bottlenecks,” said Balbir Singh, General Manager, SIDBI.

This developmental initiative is aligned to expectations laid down in the UK Sinha Committee on MSMEs set up by RBI. It envisions more focused engagement of SIDBI with State Governments for MSME promotion & development. The PMU will also prepare the process for handholding MSMEs in the State for their on boarding onto digital platforms such as PSBLoansIn59Minutes, Stock Exchange listing, e-commerce platforms such as Government e-Marketplace etc. Along with that, the PMU will also engage in mapping repositories of good practices and guidelines both within and outside the State and facilitate adoption of good practices. It will create a framework for evaluating the impact of interventions being made for the benefit of MSMEs and shall also provide inputs for policy advocacy.